A Little Warrior Maiden
by KitWolfren
Summary: Hannah, a friend of Lex's, kills a creature that Lex once told her about, and meets a being she's also heard of. But he's not like anything she was told. He offers to take her with him, but her space adventure doesn't turn out exactly how she had hoped.
1. Friends

Disclaimer: I do not own Yaut'ja, Xenomorphs or anything from AVP! (no matter how much I want my own Yaut'ja…) However Hannah and Yeyinde are my characters. Yeyinde is obviously not Scar, so don't go there! And also, when Hannah talks about religion, it's nothing personal against anyone! She's just stating what she knows. Ok? So no flames on that!  
And I'm making a lot of stuff up as I go…so yeah…

Spell checked and revised a bit!

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Hannah wandered, dejectedly kicking a stick out of her path. She'd been run out of town by the rest of the homeless population. A rustle startled her, and she watched the bushes and underbrush off to her right like a hawk. Reaching into her right pocket she pulled out her little double shot Remington Derringer that she'd stolen from an antique shop a few years ago.

A moment later something leapt at her from the bushes, and landed on her face. Her arm, however, had beaten the creature there. She shoved it away, pain lacing across the sides of her face as its claws drug away. Throwing it down she fired both shots into it. The creature twitched and gave out a sharp shrill screech before going still.

Looking at it a little closer, it resembled a large headless spider with a long tail, and two flat flaps behind the legs. "It's, those things…Lex told me…oh dear, they're back!" she whispered horrified. She leapt up and ran back towards the sewer opening. On her way she passed a body, stopping she turned to look at it. It was the man who owned the sword shop she used to visit a lot, before she lost everything. It was a tourist shop where the, now dead, owner made his own real swords.

He was a quiet guy, brusque and rude when he did talk. She remembered him telling someone that he actually went out to practice with them. Looking around she saw a stump with hack marks in it, and a broad sword lying near it. She picked it up, weighing it in her hands. It was a little heavier than she preferred, but not by too much. Giving it a practice swing, her body started to remember what it was like. A faint smile crept onto her lips, but fell away when she heard a hissing sound behind her.

Spinning quickly, Hannah saw one of the creatures Lex had described stalking slowly towards her. Its tail lashed ominously. Dropping into a defensive crouch, Hannah readied herself for an attack and at the same time prepared herself to attack if there was an opening. Her eyes never left the creature, hoping for a tell-tale movement that would let her know when it was going to attack. _How am I supposed to know? I don't know what they do! A human moves their shoulder before attacking…these…how do I know? _

Suddenly without any warning that she could notice, it lunged forward at her. Ducking low she missed its claws as it reared above her. She twisted and put all her force into an upward swing, driving her sword deep into its neck. Leaping back as fast as she could, she saw a small splash of blood hit her coat and start to sizzle as it ate it away. She ripped the coat off and tossed it on the ground, cursing as her warmest coat was destroyed.

Hearing a sound behind her, she spun quickly and not having a weapon put her fists up defensively. A section of air rippled, and a large humanoid materialized in front of her. Lex had told her of these things as well. Yaut'ja they called themselves.

He looked at her, then at the creature she had killed moments before. Looking her over for a moment, he cocked his head to the left and made a soft clicking noise. Bending down, he pulled a finger-like leg from the little creature she'd shot. Dipping the end in some of its blood, he turned back to Hannah.

Lex's words flashed back into her head, "_He used the blood to mark me, see here? Yeah, it's apparently some symbol of rank. The others respected me for it, saved my life probably. He had the same mark on his face."_ Hannah looked up at him and nodded, then closed her eyes as he brought the leg to her cheek, burning something into her face.

Once he drew back, she opened her eyes, looking up at his mask. The mark on it matched the one on Lex's cheek. She smiled a bit, dug into her tattered shoulder bag, and pulled out a picture of Lex with the scar on her cheek. She held it up for the yaut'ja to see. "Lex, my friend, she's marked too," Hannah said to him.

Reaching up he removed two connecting cables from his mask, each of them popping away with a hiss of air and gas, then he lifted it off his face. He let out a roar in her face, wondering if he could scare her a bit.

Wiping a bit of spittle from under her left eye, she blinked rapidly and asked, "Now, was the spit really necessary?" She wiped it on her pants as the yaut'ja let out an amused growl. He looked down at the picture. "Oh, I guess you don't see things the same with your mask on," she guessed.

Giving her a nod, he handed back the picture, tapping Lex's mark and then Hannah's cheek, before tapping his own forehead. She smiled when she saw the mark there that matched hers and Lex's. He placed his hand on her shoulder, giving a soft shake. Hannah reached up and tried to return the gesture, but found him a little harder to move.

A crack of a tree limb sounded above them and the yaut'ja looked up, throwing his mask back on, connecting it quickly. Hannah stepped back, looking up as well. "There!" She pointed to a different tree, where she'd spotted the shine off of the creatures head. The yaut'ja turned and looked, readying a spear. The creature leapt down at them, narrowly missing Hannah.

She was knocked backwards over a fallen log by a side sweep of the creature's long tail. Righting herself quickly, she snatched up a branch almost as big as herself; she stood again, watching the yaut'ja swipe at the thing with blades coming from the guards on his wrist. She noticed he was pinned, and the creature's face was inching closer to the yaut'ja's. Using the stick like a javelin, she threw it at the creature's head, smacking clean into the back of it.

The hissing black mass of death looked up at her and gave a louder hiss that almost sounded like a shout of anger. It turned and leaped towards her. She ducked out of the way, falling behind a large tree. The creature's tail lashed at her, hitting the side of the tree, and splinters of wood flew everywhere.

The yaut'ja had righted himself and aimed his shoulder cannon at the creature. When it wouldn't fire, he let out an angry hiss and picked up his spear that had fallen to the side, running up to the creature and driving it into the back of it's head. The creature screamed and lashed its tail towards the yaut'ja. Hannah rammed into the side of the creature, knocking it off balance and the sharp end of its tail narrowly missed the yaut'ja's throat by inches.

When the creature landed, it wasn't moving. Hannah looked over at the yaut'ja after making sure that the thing had stopped. "Hey, are you alright?" She asked, breathing heavily.

He nodded at her, and then responded in a scratchy and clicking voice, "Are you alright?"

Hannah looked surprised, "You can talk?" The yaut'ja tilted its head. "Or can you repeat what I say?" When he echoed the word "repeat" she nodded. "So…you can only repeat what I say, but you do understand what I'm saying, right?" She asked. He nodded. "You really ought to work on maybe a translator or something…" she mumbled looking back at the creatures body.

"Translator!" the yaut'ja barked, and pointed back toward a deeper part of the woods. "Translator."

Hannah looked back at him and her gaze followed the direction he was pointing. "Back by Dead Man's Cave? You have a translator back there? In what…a ship? A home?" She asked, hoping he'd find a word he could use.

"Ship. Translator back there," He told her. Bending down he pulled his spear from the creature's head. He pulled out a solution and a cloth. Pouring the solution on the cloth, he wiped the acidic blood away. He tapped her leg to get her attention, and then put his finger on the blood on the cloth. It didn't burn.

"Oh, a neutralizing agent, eh?" She bent down with him and looked at it. He nodded. "Awesome," she told him with a grin. Going from one creature to the next, he kept the heads, putting one on one stump, and the other on a different one; he pulled out a vial of blue liquid, and poured it on the bodies. They melted away extremely fast. "Whoa… that's some strong goo…" Hannah muttered.

He picked up one of the heads and looked it over, then handed it to Hannah, and grabbed the other one. "Ship. Translator back there." He said again, and motioned for her to follow him. She shrugged, not really having anywhere else to go. She trudged through the underbrush after him, carrying the head under her arm.

They reached Dead Man's Cave, and kept walking. _How far away did he park? _She wondered, but kept walking without complaint. He finally stopped and pushed a button on his wrist computer. A ship the size of a mobile home appeared a few feet in front of them. "Whoa…That's amazing!" Hannah stepped back to look at it. "Wow…" she looked at the yaut'ja who was watching her growling in a quiet and amused way. She blushed and followed him.

He led her through a hatch and down the hallway to the right. Pulling off his mask he set it on a holder on the wall. "The ship acts as a translator," he said suddenly. His voice was clearer, but it was still scratchy, and she could hear some clicks echoing in the background of his speech. "But I also have a portable one; I just didn't think I would need it." He turned and looked at her, "That is your trophy. You should have a place in your home to display it. The first trophy is important."

Hannah smiled and gave a shrug, "I would, but…I don't have a home. I've been living on the streets for a couple of years now." She looked around, not noticing his eyes widen in surprise.

_She is a strong warrior, how can she not have a home? _He thought to himself.

When he voiced his question, Hannah laughed a little bitterly. "I'm guessing we're from two completely different cultures," she said looking up at him. _Damn he's tall…_ "I know there is a hunt down south, in Antarctica. My friend Lex was there when it happened. She's the one in the picture I showed you. She met one of your kind, and well, it turned out alright, until he died."

The yaut'ja nodded, "Yes, we called him Scar. He died a warrior. But his death brought…unseen circumstances." He let out a series of growls that she realized were chuckles. "One of the Kainde Amedha had gotten him, and gotten inside. When it was born out of him…it was an U'darahje. It had our features added to it." He said while taking some of his armor and weapons off. He pulled his shoulder plasma caster off and threw it on a bench to the side. "Pauk-de Sivk'va-tai!"

"How come some words don't get translated?" She asked, not understanding some of what he had said.

He looked at her, "Some are not? Damn…something is not working correctly." His mandibles flared for a second in anger. "I will have to fix it later. What did not translate?"

"Uhm well, U'dara—something and Kainde Ame- Amedha.. and uh, Pauk-de Si…oh I don't know!" She said after failing to repeat them. She crossed her arms around the head that she still held.

He tapped a button on his wrist computer, "U'darahje, Kainde Amedha, and Pauk-de Sivk'va-tai." Tapping a button again, he said, "Abomination, the first word. The second two, mean Hard Meat. That is was we killed today. And the next, is an expletive, and I was talking about my shoulder weapon." He watched her as she thought about it.

"Ok, makes sense. One more question. You're very patient, why? Lex mentioned that the yaut'ja she'd met…well they didn't seem like they really wanted to talk. Even after all the killing had ended." She looked up at him.

He chuckled again, "Ah, yes. Well, I'm a bit more on my own. I am part of my clan, yes. But I've earned my own ship, and spend my time as I please. And, If you promise not to tell anyone, your race intrigues me." He looked at her harshly, "Tell anyone of this, and I will end your life. It would make me weak in anyone's eyes."

Hannah smiled, "It doesn't in mine. And you have my word, I won't tell a soul." She watched as he used some devices on the kainde amedha head he had, _Kainde Amedha, _she repeated to herself so she'd remember. "What are you doing?" She asked walking over to him.

"Cleaning my trophy," he looked at her, still holding hers, "watch me first, then I will help you learn how to clean yours." He turned back to his, and slid over on the bench, giving her room to sit and watch.

She sat down and did as he said, asking questions about a device he used now and then, and why he used it. Once he was done, the head was preserved and protected from wear. "That last coat protects it from decay, and allows me to use water to clean dust from it, without wearing it down." He told her, as he stood and walked to the back, "Follow."

Hannah leaped up and followed him to the back of the craft. "Behind us are the engines, and a small room from which to make repairs while in flight." He approached a wall and a light turned on, glowing orange. She followed closely, having tripped over something in the darkness on their way back. He hung the head up on the wall beside others. There were many different kinds along with Kainde Amedha.

"You hunt us?" She asked, seeing a human skull and part of it's backbone.

He looked at it, "When we are much younger, Pyode Amedha—" Hannah cut him off, "Say that again, the translator missed it." He nodded, "Soft Meat. Any sort of humanoid actually. And only those worth hunting. We have a strong code, we do not hunt the sick, or injured, or any mother or mother-to-be, or the very young."

Hannah listened and twitched her mouth a bit, not sure what to think of him having hunted humans. "But we only hunt them early on. After the Hard Meat Chiva," He heard the translator fail that time and hissed in aggravation, "Hard Meat Trial, we hunt only Kainde Meat." This time he let out a growl and turned, "I will fix the translator." Walking brusquely out of the room he headed to the opposite end of the craft with Hannah close behind him.

"Then we will clean my trophy?" She asked, eagerly. _Wow, I guess I'm really getting into this. _She thought to herself with a chuckle. _He doesn't seem like anything Lex said about Scar. He seems…nice…well, with the exception of human hunting…_

He turned and nodded, "Yes, we will then clean yours." He looked at a panel and pulled up what she figured were diagnostics. Reading them silently, he made a click, and bent down to the bulkhead, pulling a panel off of it and reaching inside, pulling out a mass of wires running through a box. She noticed some wires were loose as he put them back into a slot, and pushed a button on the side of the box. He opened his mouth to talk, but it was completely in his language.

"Nope." Hannah said, and he growled, aggravated, switching the wires and pushing the button again. "Now?" He asked. Hannah smiled and nodded, "Yeah, that did it." She suddenly had a thought pop up, "Uhm, what's your name?"

He looked up at her as he was placing the wired box back into it's place. "Yeyinde. It means Brave One." He told her, sliding the panel back into place, he stood up. "And what is your name?"

"I'm Hannah. Uhm… I think it's Greek, but it means Grace of God," she told him with a grin. He looked slightly puzzled, _expressions…I understand expressions! _"What's wrong?" she asked him.

"Grace of God, but…which god?" He asked her, heading back to the place he'd cleaned his trophy.

"Oh, well most of our religions only have one God. Our ancestors had many gods, but not anymore. Christianity became the most popular religion, well Christianity and all those many different versions of it, I guess." She let him take the head from her.

He looked it over and clicked his mandibles as he thought abut what she said. "That sounds strange to me," he finally said.

"Hmm, probably, but you gotta realize, having many gods sounds weird to me just as much as one God sounds weird to you," she reminded him, picking up one of the tools. "This one first, right?"

He nodded both in agreement with her statement, and her choice of tool. "Careful, and get right up in here, so that none of the soft tissue is left." He pointed to the front, where she noticed a little pocket. "Aim the nozzle and push the button on the side." A blue light waved over the pocket and there was a slight sizzle and then a little bit of smoke. "Alright, sweep it over the inside completely…yes, just like that." It wasn't long until they were done. "You may place it on the bottom of my wall in the back until you have a wall of your own to display it on." Yeyinde told her.

Hannah smiled and thanked him, getting up to go put it there. She tripped over something again. "Damnit! You need lights in here! How the hell do you see anything!?" She growled out to him, rubbing her shin.

He looked down the hallway at her, "I can see fine." He reached over to the wall and pressed a button. Soft lights came on along the bottom of the walls, lighting the floor. "I forget you cannot," he said in what she guessed was all she'd get for an apology.

Hanging the trophy head on the wall with the others, she smiled. _It's so cool looking! Ha! _Her mind was excited, but she kept a cool and relaxed posture. "So how many are there on Earth? Of the Kainde Amedha, I mean." She asked him.

"Just the ones we killed today. I only brought three with me. And you killed most of them." He told her. _Well, I suppose she did. I hadn't realized that in all the commotion. _

"Oh, sorry," Hannah said, coming back into the same room he was in. She looked out the door way and noticed it was dark already. The thought of night without her good coat sent a shiver through her.

"Are you cold, Hannah?" Yeyinde asked, standing up, and shutting the hatch.

"Hmm, no I was just thinking. I lost my good coat to one of those damned things today. I'll have to get a new one soon. It gets cold here at night." She told him, turning to face him.

"Yes, your planet is far too cold for my tastes really. Home, is a lot warmer. Always," he told her. "You are welcome to stay here with me tonight," he added. "It will be much warmer in here."

Hannah nodded, "I heard it was supposed to snow tonight," she said disgustedly. "I don't like snow, not one bit. I used to, when I was younger. But not anymore. Now it's just cold, dangerous and uncomfortable."

Yeyinde watched her with an amused look in his eyes, "You are not old enough to be that bitter about your present compared to your past. You have been alive how many years, 20?" he growled a laugh out.

Hannah smiled, "Do I really look that young? Hm, point for me. I'm 26," she told him. "27, next month actually. On the eighth." She smiled sadly, thinking back to her birthdays with her family before the fire. Before everything had gone up in smoke, literally.

"You are sad, Hannah. Why?" Yeyinde asked. _Why should I care? _He suddenly thought, _Why do I care? Why do I care if I care? _Then he stopped wondering before he confused himself. He'd always been too much of a thinker.

Hannah looked up and smiled, "Sad? I'm not sad. Sorry if I seemed that way, I was just lost in thought I guess." Her stomach suddenly growled loudly, and she blushed a bright red.

"I have some Naxa fruit. Hold on, let me get you one." He stood and walked to the middle of the ship, opening a compartment that hissed open. It was chilled, she could tell as the cold air touched her face. "Here," he handed her a bright red round thing, the size of a grapefruit. "It may be different that what you're used to, but it's all I have that you can digest."

She looked it over, "So do I peel it or what?"

He took it back and cut a piece of rind off with his claw like fingernail, "here, peel it and the sections come apart."

Taking it from him, she did as he was told, a citrus like smell greeting her nostrils. "It reminds me of oranges, and grapefruits we have here." She got the rind off, and pulled a section off. The inside was made of almost diamond shaped pieces that reminded her of apples. "With a bit of apple or pear mixed in…" She took a bite. It was sweet and strong flavored. It had a bit of a cinnamon taste to it after a few bites. "Ooh this is great!" She said, with a grin, and munched happily on it.

She looked up to see him chewing on a piece of raw meat, as he was typing some stuff into the main computer. He held it in his mandibles and fed it slowly into his smaller mouth. Suddenly realizing she was staring at him she looked down at the fruit in her hands again. _This is definitely a weird friendship _When she realized she'd used the word friendship, a smile slid onto her face and she continued to chow down on the fruit.

Once she had finished eating, she started to realize how tired she was. "Yeyinde, uhm, is there a place I can lay down? I'm getting tired." As if to make her point, a yawn took over suddenly.

He nodded, "Yes, over here." He pressed a button on the side of the wall and a bunk swung down on what seemed like hydraulics. "This is your bed. Mine is ahead of yours." She looked up and saw another still retracted.

"That's really awesome." She looked at the bed that was at her shoulder. "Uhm…you know you're a lot taller, so I bet this thing is easy for you to get into…" She was looking around for maybe a way to step up, when suddenly she felt his hands on either side of her waist, lifting her onto the bed. "Oh, Thank you Yeyinde," she said and smiled at him.

She realized she was now at eye level with him. "Heh, you look different from this angle," she teased. He turned to walk away, but she reached out and caught his arm. _Whoa…lotsa muscle…_ "Yeyinde, I really do mean it, Thank you."

He gave her a happy rumble and faced her, "You have proved yourself a warrior, and if no one else will honor you for it, then I will do my best to. Now, you sleep well, Hannah. I will have to go out to make sure nothing was left behind, but I will not be gone long." He laid a hand on her arm and gave it a squeeze, then grabbed his helmet and walked out the hatch.

She could see a few white fluffy snowflakes falling. _Damn snow, _she thought. Then, _why is he so nice to me? Lex said they were a hard and very cruel race. I don't understand. Maybe, maybe he's different. _She lay down and tucked her arm under her head, pulling her legs into her long coats. She was asleep long before Yeyinde returned.

**Until next time my kiddies! **


	2. Don't leave me

Disclaimer: well if you read the first chappie, it's still the same as last time.  
Ballad of Serenity, copywrite whoever owns it! IT IS NOT MINE!

KJ: The way Hannah jumps outta bed is the way I used to get off the top bunk of my bed all the time. Until one day my cousin was sleeping over, and she got a knee in the face...heh...sweatdrop my bad...

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Yeyinde came back in and brushed the snow off of his shoulders. He wasn't at all pleased with the weather on this planet. Much too cold for his liking. He looked over and saw Hannah sound asleep, so he set his gear down quietly and slipped to the back room with the stealth of a hunter. Sitting in front of his trophies he looked them over. _Why, why do I care what happens to this ooman? She's just a ooman. Even she noticed that I do not act as I should._ He sighed, then laughed at himself. _Earned my own ship, they practically gave it to me, to get rid of me._ He heard her snore loudly and looked back, _that sounds awful._

Standing again, he returned to his food locker, and pulled out another peice of meat, then returned to his seat in the back. He chewed in quiet contemplation. There had to be a way around every obstical for his plan to work. Well, that and she had to be willing. But where else was she to go? She said herself she was homeless and unwanted. _Well, she isn't unwanted any longer, I want her._ He paused, _That was wrong..._ He laughed to himself at his words. Not quite what he meant.

Looking at her trophy skull he glanced over at his first one. Hers was bigger than it. Grabbing it off the wall he set it next to hers. He'd point out she'd taken an adult while his first kill was not quite yet the largest it would get. He stretched, and went back up to where Hannah was sleeping. He watched her breathing for moment, when she suddenly stopped. After a moment, when she still hadn't breathed, he reached out and shook her worriedly. "Hannah! Hannah wake up!" He barked commandingly at her.

Hannah started and jolted upright, "What? What is it? What's wrong?" She asked sleepily. Looking at Yeyinde she rubbed her right eye, "huh?" _Oh this better be good... that was a lovely dream about McDreamy..._ She thought to herself.

"You stopped breathing in your sleep. I thought...you were dying," Yeyinde admitted, wondering if he'd imagined it now.

"Oh, that. No, I'm ok, I just have sleep apnea. It's ok," she told him. Noticing the confused look on his face she yawned then explained, "it just means that I sometimes stop breathing for few seconds at night. Sometimes it wakes me, but not usually. Don't worry, I'm ok. I've had it all my life." _Definately not worth waking me from McDreamy...oh those satin sheets!_ She yawned again, "Goodnight, again, Yeyinde." She rolled over, still a little grumpy about being woke up. Sighing she closed her eyes and cleared her mind, falling asleep again.

"Goodnight, Hannah," Yeyinde muttered, and pulled his bed down. Hopping onto it and laying down he pondered what she said. _Stops breathing? Isn't... isn't that dangerous? Is there a way to fix it? A cure?_ He wondered off and on about it and other conditions that he'd witnessed in humans, finally concluding, _such a sickly species... amazing they make good prey at all!_ before drifting to sleep himself.

A loud blaring alarm woke Hannah early in the morning. She sat bolt upright, and almost tumbled out of her bed. Yeyinde's hand came up to her suddenly, stopping her from falling. "Relax, little warrior," he chuckled. "It is nothing, just a message from another yaut'ja ship," he explained to her.

Rubbing her eyes and looking around, trying to work up enough to saliva to wet her very dry mouth she asked sleepily, "why is it so freaking loud?" She looked down and jumped off the bed, spinning as she did so she landed holding it, balancing herself in her sleepy state. "Oh wow," she stretched out and yawned, "what time is it?" She looked at the watch on her wrist, "Shit! The damned batteries died!" She grumbled and pulled it off, sticking it in her bag with an annoyed sigh.

"The alarm is loud because it is an urgent message," Yeyinde finally answered her. "A ship is in distress, I must go to help. Sit quickly, and put on the straps, we will be exiting the atmosphere hard." He spun, hitting buttons and typing things, and moving dials in rapid and well practiced motions.

"WHAT!? Leaving! LEAVING! Are you kidding me!?" Hannah protested, standing up.

Yeyinde paused, "You said yourself, you have no where to live, and no one wants you. You are welcome here with me. Why not come, and if you wish, later I shall return you. But you are not welcome in this town, and it is too far to the next town, you would die in this cold." He told her in a calm and logical tone. After saying this, he returned to his take off preparations, "put on the straps."

Hannah stood still and stared at the yaut'ja until she heard the engines come to life with a roar, and the deck plating rumble beneath her feet. She sat down quickly, cursing while she attempted to strap herself in. After multiple tries and failures, she suddenly realized Yeyinde had reached over to help her. She sat back and let him strap her in, watching which straps buckled where. Two over shoulder, two around waist, one between legs, all meeting in the middle. "Thank you," she said quietly.

"Release is in the middle, just hit the button," he told her, sitting down and strapping himself in. "Here we go, hold on."

The engines flared and the ship rattled and moved, lifting off the ground, and spinning, then taking off suddenly. Hannah felt herself smushed back into the back of the chair. "ohmygod..." she whispered to herself, feeling the blood drain from her face in fear.

Smelling her fear, Yeyinde glanced over at her, and saw her white face. He chuckled and kept the craft steady. He remembered the first trip he'd taken, having been born on land. He'd responded much the same, though he'd been far younger than she was, reletively of course.

Hannah watched as the ground fell away, and the sky continually got a deeper blue, until it faded to black, and the stars shone out. "We're... we're..." she whispered.

"In space? Yes," Yeyinde finished for her amused. A thought crossed his mind, "Hannah... I need to speak to you about something. Uhm, the rest of my people... they may not see you as a warrior..." he fumbled for words, a little confused on how to put it.

"They'll think I'm you're prey?" She asked. He shook his head. "No, ok...a slave?" she looked over at him to see him nodding softly, looking down at his hands. "It's ok. Just so long as you dont decide to sell me," she said with a conspiratorial wink in his direction. "So what was the distress signal about?"

Yeyinde looked at the blinking light, "it seems engine failure and hull fractures," he told her reading a screen next to the light. "We'll go assist repairs. Hannah, you need to stay on my ship at all times, understand?" He looked over at her, "it is of the utmost importance that you listen to me. Stay on my ship Hannah. Do not leave this ship."

Hearing the serious tone in his voice, Hannah nodded quietly. "I will, I promise Yeyinde. I wont leave this ship."

He sat back a bit, relieved to hear her say that. He turned back to the dials.

Hannah started to sing softly, the intro song to one of her favorite sci-fi shows,

_**"Take my love,  
take my land,  
take me where I cannot stand,  
I don't care,  
I'm still free,  
you can't take the sky from me. **_

Take me out,  
to the black,  
tell 'em I ain't coming back,  
burn the land,  
and boil the sea,  
you can't take the sky from me.

There's no place,  
I can be,  
since I found Serenity,  
but you can't take the sky from me." 

Yeyinde stared at her for a second, "you...ah, what is it you call it...si..sing?" _I've never heard anything like it before. She is talented. _

Hannah blushed, suddenly realizing she'd started singing outloud rather than in her head as she'd planned. "Uh, heh, yeah. Sorry. I guess I didn't realize I was.

Yeyinde growled a laugh, "Do not be sorry. I like it. You should do it more often. Yaut'ja cannot sing, I have heard it tried before... it was a horrible, yet humorous experience." He looked at a screen that showed his coordinates compared to the ship they were heading to assist. "We are almost there, if I seem... harsh, please forgive me, I just want our cover to be..."

"Believeable?" Hannah supplied with a smirk. "No problem. I've lived on the streets, harsh is fine by me. Your harsh...hell, it's probably a lot better than a nice day on the west side of town!" She laughed at her own joke. Hitting the button on her strap harness, she then stood, "I'll go to the back, less suspicious then." As she walked by, she gave the beds a push, and closed them, hearing them latch with a hiss. She smiled at her work, pleased with herself and turned and walked back.

_Paya, give me the strength to protect her,_ Yeyinde prayed silently. He hailed the other ship as they approached, scanning for lifesigns. "Bhu'ja-Thwei! This is the Guan-Thwei, respond," He said over the communications channel. His scan came back, no lifesigns. He slammed a fist down on the bulkhead, "C'jit!" He thought back, recalling the name of the shuttles captain, "Bakuub! Respond!" When nothing but a bit of static returned, he sat back and sighed, placing a hand on his forhead, muttering a prayer to Cetanu, for the dead captain and crew.

"Yeyinde? What's going on?" Hannah asked, peering up the hallway at him. "What's wrong?" She came up to the front, behind his chair.

"We were too late. They are thei-de...no one is nan-ku," he muttered, switching his communication channel closed and turning off the scanner. He looked back up at her and saw the concern on her face. _Why does she care? They are not her people, she does not even know them._

"Oh, Yeyinde...I'm sorry," though the words didn't translate, she understood from how he was acting, what had happened. She stored the words away in her memory, knowing what they meant. She placed a hand on his shoulder, "Is there anything we can do?" She looked at him solemnly.

"Yes, I want you to stay here. I will go over and see what has happened," he stood up and placed a hand on her shoulder as well, grateful for her company.

"I want to go with you!" She objected.

"I dont have a suit to protect you from the Kjuhte," he motioned to the space outside the viewports. "It would be stupid and H'ulij-bpe to let you go in one not designed for you."

"Kjuhte? H'ulij-bpe?" She said, not knowing what the words were. "The translator is having more issues," she said looking down at the panel it was in. The bulkhead above it had a yaut'ja fist sized dent in it.

"I will fix it later. Kjuhte is the void, or space. H'ulij-bpe means crazy. It would be stupid and crazy to let you come with me," he picked her up and set her in his chair. "This button, press it when you want to speak to me, it will patch you through to the communicator in my helmet while I'm over there." He mentally added, _And I do not want to lose you yet, little warrior._ He smiled to himself as he used that nickname again. He finally resigned to the fact that he wanted her around, having been so alone for so long. He needed some sort of compainionship. "I will not be gone long." He patted her shoulder before walking back and placing a suit on, and a helmet that looked a lot like his mask, but covered his head and attached to the suit. Opening the hatch, he stepped through a field of energy that kept the oxygen in the ship, he attached a tether to the side of the ship by the hatch opening, and pushed off towards the dead ship.

Hannah watched him float away, looked down at the button and pressed it, "Yeyinde?"

Yeyinde heard her tentative voice, and said, "Yes? Are you already lonely?"

"No!" Hannah snapped, "I just wanted to make sure it wasn't malfunctioning like the translator." She huffed and pulled her finger off the button. She could hear his growling chuckle, but ignored it. "Jerk," She crossed her arms and watched him enter the other ship. He disappeared into the hatch after attaching the other end of his tether to the dead ship. He floated off to the right, towards what she figured was the bridge. Watching the door for his return she sighed. A shadowy movement caught her eye. She leaned forward and pressed the button again, "Yeyinde, are you by the door still?"

Hearing her nervous question, Yeyinde tensed, "No, I am not. Why do you ask?" He looked around and found the computer that held the last records of the ship, and placed a credit card sized chip into it, watching as the information downloaded.

"Because," Hannah's voice came back, even more nervous than before. "I just saw something move in the doorway."

The next thing she knew, she heard Yeyinde roar loudly and a wild scream from something she'd never heard before. "Yeyinde!" All that came back was static. "YEYINDE!" she screamed.

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**UNTIL NEXT TIME KIDDIES!**  
haha i love me...


	3. Fire

Disclaimer: same as always, I own not what I want...  
sketchy sketchy sketchy!  
And a little about Hannah's past

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Hannah looked down at the many buttons, screens, and switches in front of her. Closing her eyes, she thought back, _Which one...the switch...but which one?_ Remembering when he'd switched off the life signs scanner, she reached over and flipped one of the switches. Unfortunately what met her was nothing she understood. There was a jumble of symbols, and a meter that was decreasing slowly. She glared at the weird lettering, wishing she could understand it. Slamming her finger on the com button again, she prayed for a response, "Yeyinde? Yeyinde, are you there? Yeyinde?" Her voice started to rise in panic. _I'm stuck out here, I'm alone...Yeyinde..._ Tears started to well up in her eyes, both of loss and fear. "Yeyinde!" She called out, jamming the button down again, "you can't die! You can't leave me out here! YEYINDE!" She growled in frustration. "Please, answer me," she added in a soft whimper.

The com line hissed and crackled, then a voice answered, "Hannah, do you think I would die so easily?"

Tears of relief spilled down her cheeks, "Yeyinde! You're alright!" She bit her lip to hold back a sob of joy.

"I am injured, but I will be fine. I am coming over with the data from the ship's computer," Yeyinde informed her.

Hannah smiled, "Alright." She watched the hatch of the other ship, waiting to see her friend. _My friend...my only friend..._ She chuckled, realizing her only real friend was a being from a different world, literally. She wondered if she should find a first aid kit or something, but didn't think she'd be able to recognize it. She caught sight of a hand on the hatch. Then a head, Yeyinde's. He reached out and grabbed the tether, clipping it onto his suit. Kicking off, she watched him float towards their ship. A trail of bright neon green floated out behind him. _Is that blood? Ohmygawd! It is!_ She panicked a little and nibbled on her bottom lip.

Yeyinde growled as he reached the hatch to his own ship, and grabbed the handle by the open hatchway. Pulling himself through the barrier into the breathable atmosphere, he grunted as the weightlessness was stripped away. Quickly shedding the space suit, he took the data chip to the pilot seat. "Hannah," he said her name quietly.

She was pulled from her thoughts and whipped around to look up at him. "Yeyinde!" She stood up and threw her arms around his chest, not reaching all the way around him.

He gave loud a surprised click, before softly clicking his mandibles together, regarding the little human embracing him. "Well, I suppose a chi'ytei is an unexpected return." He patted her back softly, returning the guesture in his own way.

Looking up at him, "a what? Chee huh?" She stepped back and saw the neon green blood oozing from a wound on his side. "Yeyinde! You're bleeding!" She looked down at herself and saw her arm and part of her chest were bright green, "all over me..." Looking back up at him she frowned and gave him a fake pout, "now I dont expect that's very nice of you!"

Yeyinde growled out a laugh, "Well let me go fix that. And a chi'ytei, it is an embrace." He turned and plugged the data chip into his computer lettiing it download while he went back to mend himself. Looking at the wound he saw it crossed another scar, making an X shape now. He smiled at it, pleased by the look of it. Also noticing that it wasn't life threatening, but was bleeding rather heavily, and quite wide. _She is turing out to be quite interesting. My little warrior. It should turn out to be very interesting._ Grabbing a medkit from the back room, he pulled out a small cylinder. Opening the top he ran it over the wound. It hissed as it cauterized the wound. He bit back a roar of pain, hating the feeling of his flesh burning, even if it was by the device in his hand. Besides, it was weak to roar about mending. Closing the top, and putting the cylinder back into the kit, he grabbed a rag and wiped the blood from his body. He grabbed another rag and went back to the cockpit of the ship, handing it to Hannah, "here, clean yourself." He sat down in the pilot's chair that she had vacated. He pulled up the data from the other ship, and read through a screen of diagnostics and information. Sighing, finding nothing there except a power conduit exploding, causing the hull breaches, he turned and looked at the video information. Images came up onto screen, and he watched something whizz by, not sure what it was. When he slowed down the image he saw the creature he had killed. It was large and sort of like one of the Kainde Amedha, except that the head was rounder, and the body more compact. It had bladed wings on its back, and a stinger rather than a tail. Scythe-like claws were attached to its first pair of arms, and clawed hands to its other two pairs.

"What is that?" Hannah asked from behind him, the rag in her hand smeared with his blood, her shirt only partly cleaned. She sat down in the co-pilots chair and looked at him. "Did you, kill it?"

Nodding, his hissed angrily, "Blasted the pauk-de head right off!" He closed the display and grumbled, "would have been a perfect trophy."

Hannah laughed, "silly yaut'ja, destroyed your trophy." She stopped laughing when he glared at her. Shrugging slightly, "I only tease friends." Then she stood and walked to the fridge-like box, and found another naxa. Peeling it, she pulled it apart and started to munch away. "So, what now?" she called up to him

Yeyinde didn't hear her question, he was thinking about what she said. _"__I only tease friends__." So, I am her friend? Friend._ He smiled to himself. It had been a long time since anyone had considered him a friend. Long before everything had turned bad...

"Yeyinde! Are you even awake? Geeze!" Hannah tossed the rag at him, and it landed on top of his head. She giggled as she popped another peice of naxa in her mouth.

Turning and snatching the rag off of his head, Yeyinde growled a warning at her, "you'd best behave yourself on my ship, you tarei'hasan!" He glared at her, throwing the rag back at her, watching in amusement as it landed on her face, covering it completely.

She didn't know what he said, but figured it to be an insult. "Hey!" She cried just moments before the bloody rag hit her face. She sat stunned for a second, then heard his laughing growl. Pulling the rag from her face, leaving little neon green smears all over, she glared at him. "That's just mean! And gross! That's worse than when you spit on me!" She tried to wipe the blood off with her sleeve.

He thought back to when he'd first met the little human. He'd roared at her, trying to scare her, and had accidentally spit on her. _She was brave even when she'd first saw me._ He remembered the picture she'd shown him, of the other human female. "Who was that female in the picture?" He asked.

Hannah paused for a second, "Oh! That is an old friend of mine. Her name is Lex. She was part of some science expedition to Antarctica. Apparently there were yaut'ja there for a kainde amedha hunt." She told him, "I met her when she came to our town to visit some family. That was a long time ago though. When I still had a home." Her voice got quiet, and the sadness and pain was evident.

He wanted to asked what had happened to cause her to be homeless, but he figured she probably didn't want to talk about it. "I see, what happened to this Lex?" he asked, stearing the subject back to the female.

Shrugging, Hannah answered, "She wrote me once, telling me all about what had happened, and everything she saw. She even tried to draw a picture of Scar." Hannah laughed here, "Drawing isn't one of her main talents." She walked forward and pulled open her bag, digging she pulled out a sketch book with a dirty cover. Opening it, and pulling out a paper that had been crumpled then smoothed again, she handed it to him, "here see." It was Lex's sketch.

Yeyinde took the paper, careful not to tear it with his talon like nails. It was a rough sketch of his old friend, Scar. Though he did have to admit it didn't look much like him. "I see that you are correct. It does not look much like Scar at all." He handed back the paper to Hannah.

Taking it, she sat down, and pulled a pencil out of one of her coat pockets. "Can I draw you?" she asked him innocently, turning the sketch book to a new page.

He glanced sideways at her, "if you think you can." He chuckled to himself, _I wonder what she sees me as._ he thought, wondering what the drawing would look like.

Hannah smiled and set to work, pulling her knees up, to give her something to rest the sketch book on. She sat quietly sketching, occasionally looking up at him, sometimes for a couple minutes, then returning to her sketch book, working furiously. Once she got the basics done and was ready for texture and shading, she started to talk, "so, what's the plan now? I mean, what are we gonna do?"

Yeyinde was almost surprised to hear her speak again, "I do not know. I figured that if you wanted, I suppose I should take you back to your home." _I forgot about this...I did not want this to end so soon._

Hannah laughed, "you forget, I don't have a home. So, what's next? I mean, what would you normally do now? Cuz, if you don't mind, I'd like to stay for a while, if that's ok with you." She peered up at him, wondering what his reaction would be.

_Stay? She wants to stay?_ He looked at her and nodded, "you may stay with me. I will need to restock some more food for you. We will return to your planet to do so. But first I must take care of this ship." Nodding towards the drifting carcass of the other ship, he started to move them above it. Once they were closer, he hit a button and a cable shot out, attaching to the hull of the other ship, and they drug it. He looked at the star chart, "your sun is the closest. We will bury them in it."

Hannah looked up, "oh, really? Is that how you do space burials?" She kept sketching, only looking up for a few glances at him.

"No, we usually just cremate the bodies and scatter them. But when disposing of a larger mass such as a ship, we deposite them in suns. We may be hunters, but we do not leave our messes lying around space. It should not be long until your race reaches the stars." He told her, trying to sneek a peek at her drawing of him.

Seeing him leaning closer, Hannah leaned back, smiling when she got an aggravated growl from him. "I think it will be a while. I mean, seriously, we're too caught up in politics. All sorts of crazy stuff there. War too. Lately it's been crazy." She sighed and kept sketching, almost finished. "It will be a long time before we're space borne."

"For you maybe, but not to yaut'ja. We outlive you by hundreds of years," he told her, watching the ship on his screens. It was starting to twist a bit. Pushing a button, he sent another cable out, and used the second to stop the twisting.

"Yeyinde, how old are you?" she asked, looking at him steadily. _Hundreds? Wow, he's probably seen a lot then._

He paused and she could hear his mandibles clicking together slowly, "ah...I am over 350 of your years. I do not remember exactly how many, however. In our years I am," here he paused again. "I am 32 of our years. They are much longer than your years, for our planet circles two suns. Both of which are much larger than your own, making the journey around them much longer."

Hannah nodded, "So that's why you keep it so hot in here, you're used to a warmer climate." She was back to her sketching again. "Almost done."

"Yes, our climate is much warmer than yours," He just now noticed she'd stopped wearing her coats, and they were hung on the back of the co-pilots seat. She was now in a dark blue tank top, with patches of black material, and a pair of lighter blue jeans, with brown patches and holes in them. Her feet were covered in what used to be white shoes, that were worn through and had pieces that had fallen off. _She needs better clothing. Not these rags!_ He looked at the mark he had placed on her cheek when she had killed the kainde amedha. She was an honored part of his clan now. Even if she would be called unworthy by some. She'd made the kill. She'd passed the trial. He felt himself looking proudly at her. She was what they considered a Young Blood. While he was a warrior, he spent most of his time alone, hunting by himself because he was not fond of hunting with others. In fact, in the past few years, his years not hers, he'd only returned to his clan's ship twice, once to mate and once to refuel.

"Ok, you have to promise not to laugh at it," Hannah said, sitting up suddenly. She held the sketch book to her chest so he couldn't see. "I don't know if I did any good by your standards."

"I promse, I will not laugh at your drawing," he turned the chair to look at her. Taking the little book as she handed it to him. On the page was an image of him, standing over a kainde amedha corpse. His dreadlocks were flying behind him, as he was driving his spear into another of the hard meat. It was a very flattering picture, showing his scars well. He clicked his mandibles together as he looked it over. "It is a very good picture. I like it very much," he told her, hoping that was an appropriate response. By the smile that lit onto her face, he figured it was. He immediately tried to remember what humans did with pictures they liked. "May we, hang it?" He asked her.

_It's good enough to hang? IT'S GOOD ENOUGH TO HANG YAY! OhMyGawd!_ Her mind was estatic. "Uhm, sure where would be safe place to hang it?" she looked around at the walls, pulling out a little roll of tape she had in her bag. There wasn't much left, just enough to hang the little picture.

Yeyinde looked at the separations between the view ports, "how about one of them? They are wide enough," he said pointing at them.

Hannah looked at him puzzled, he'd spoken to her, but it all came out in yaut'ja. "Translator broke completely," she told him, moving out of the way, since she was in front of the panel that it was in.

Setting the book on the bulkhead, he leaned over and opened the panel, reaching in and pulling out the translation device again. "Pauk!" He grumbled a bit to himself as he was fixing it. "H'ka-se?" he asked. He recieved a negative shake of the head, and fiddled with a few more wires. "Now?" This time he got a nod. "Finally. Stupid translator." He placed the device back and pulled the panel door back over it. "So, what I said was, How about on the separation between the view ports?"

Hannah nodded, "That looks as good a place as any." She looked over at them. "Can you reach it?" she asked noticing that there was a lot of instrumentation between them and the separation. She picked up the picture and pulled it out from the sketch book. Holding the tape up she put a little on all four corners.

Yeyinde looked over at it, then at Hannah, "I think you can." He bent down and picked her up, one arm under her stomach one under her legs, and leaned forward with her, as far as he could reach. He held her forward and she barely touched the separation.

_**"Hold on! Hannah hold on! Don't let go!" Georgia called from above.  
Hannah lay clinging to the 2x4 leaning out from the window, balanced on the treehouse across the alley. Behind her flames licked at the end of it. It shifted beneath her and she screamed. "Georgia! It's breaking! Georgia!" She screamed to her older sister. The 2x4 shifts again and Hannah starts to cry.  
She can hear her mothers screams from inside the building. Her father lay below her, having gotten her to safety and fallen. She saw him land, and stop moving. His neck was at a horrible angle and his arms and legs were laying awkwardly.  
"Hannah hold on!" Georgia called, "I'm coming to get you!" She started to crawl across the 2x4 that was next to the one Hannah was on. They were intended to for the repairs to Georgia's room after the water damaged roof had to be replaced. "Hold on Hannah!" Georgia called.  
"Georgia! No! That one's broke! Stay there!" Hannah called trying to warn her. "Don't come out here!"  
The 2x4 beneath Georgia cracked suddenly and she jolted, swinging around to the bottom, she screamed as her legs lost their hold on the board. Firemen rushed beneath them, trying to get a ladder up to them from their truck. They couldn't get the air cushion up in the alleyway. "Hannah!" Georgia cried, her hands slipping off the wood.  
"Georgia no!" Hannah watched as her sister fell, screaming until she landed on the neighbors car, and was silent. The ladder made it up a few minutes later, and a man grabbed Hannah, and carried her down with him. She couldn't tell what was going on, everything blurred together. The only things she saw were her dad and her sister falling, and she only heard the screams of her mother, caught inside the house.**_

Quickly slapping the tape onto the metal she whimpered, "put me down now!"

Setting her quickly to the ground, he realized how scared she was just then. He watched as she sank to the floor in a heap as soon as her feet touched down. He crouched beside her, "I did not intend to frighten you."

Hannah crawled over and hugged Yeyinde tight. Just being held up in that position had triggered the memories. She sat and cried silently, tears running down her face, as she saw her sister falling, and heard her mothers screams.

Knowing something was wrong, Yeyinde simply held still, placing his hand on her back, and making a soft noise he used with unruly infant pups, that was a lot like a purr. He felt bad for what had happened, but also reminded himself that he didn't know it would. He sat and held her until her crying stopped. Looking down he saw she had fallen asleep. He picked her up, cradled her to him with one arm, and pulled down her bed, and placed her gently on it. They'd go back to her planet after he finished with the dead ship, and she woke up. But for now, he figured it best for her to sleep.

An hour later when he was headed back to earth, he looked back, hearing Hannah stirring. "Are you awake?" he asked her, turning to look at her.

She sat up and nodded silently, not looking at him. _I've made a fool of myself. What an idiot!_ she thought, wondering how she'd explain all of that. _I suppose that the truth would be best...damnit._ She jumped down from her bed and walked over to her seat. "Yeyinde...about, about what just happened..."

"I understand, if you should not want to speak of it," he told her.

"No, I think you should know. It wasn't your fault. It, just being held up like that...reminded me of a few years ago. Something horrible happened," she sighed. Slowly taking a deep breath, she relaxed a bit, and started to tell him her story.


	4. Strawberries

Disclaimer: I own nothing that I want...as usual. Hannah however is mine.  
Kittyn: MINE YOU CAN'T HAVE HER! Mwhahahahaha! steals Hannah and stuffs her in a bag  
Hannah: What the Pauk?  
Yeyinde: What am I getting myself involved in here?  
Hannah: Kit, why do all towns have convienient forests next to them?  
Kittyn: Because I'm lazy.

random person: HEY!!! Yautja call us oomans! I see Yeyinde using the word Human!  
Kittyn: because the translator translates it! If you notice, in his thoughts, we are still Ooman!  
Yeyinde: nods this is true.  
Warning: A smidge stronger language in this chappie.

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Hannah didn't look at Yeyinde as she spoke. "It was a eight years ago, when i was nineteen. Georgia, my older sister by 4 years, was just about to head off to college. Her room was being repaired, because it had gotten some water damage in the roof above it. So there were some planks of wood, set up there, running back and forth between the window and the treehouse. We weren't allowed up there, because my dad was a real neat freak, and had all the tools and stuff set up there just how he'd find them. Georgia didn't care, all her things were already in California. She was just in town until monday. My mom was sick, so she was up asleep in her room, with the tv on, pretty loud too. I had been down stairs in the kitchen, just making a snack, some little bake able roll things that my grandma sent us all the time. When my dad yelled, and so Georgia and I ran up. He'd smacked his thumb with a hammer, he was always kinda clumsy like that. That was pretty early in the morning. We offered to help my dad, and he let us, as long as we didn't misplace anything. So by that afternoon, we'd gotten a lot of work done. But then we started to smell something weird, and my dad went to look downstairs. He came back in yelling that the whole downstairs was on fire. So he grabbed my sister and helped her on one of the planks, he told me to get mom, but when I ran to get her, I opened the door and her room was on fire. It was right above the kitchen where the worst of the fire was. I ran back to tell my dad, but he was on the other side of the alley that the planks were over. So I started to crawl towards him, across the plank. He yelled at me, and tried to come out and help me. I told him I couldn't reach mom, and he said he would get her next. But when he got over to me the plank he was on flipped over, and he fell. I could hear my mother screaming behind me, but I couldn't get back to her, It seemed like I'd just frozen where I was. Georgia tried to come out to get me, afraid that the fire would burn the end of the plank I was on, and I'd fall to, but when she got closer, the plank she was on started to crack, and she fell too. The firemen, they arrived finally, and got me down with a ladder. But, they didn't get my mom out. She died in the fire." By this point Yeyinde could barely hear her, and tears were streaming down her face. "I left the oven on all day, and it caught fire. There was something wrong with it, my dad was going to fix it, we couldn't use it for more than a half hour. The rolls only took 15 minute to cook." She hiccuped a sob away. "It was my fault the house caught fire. My fault..." her voice caught in her throat and she let out a sob.

Yeyinde reached over and pulled her close to him, resting her on his lap. "Things happen, it's not your fault, we all forget things." _She lost her entire family, all because of her mistake? Her home and family...no wonder she was not frightened of me that day. She'd nothing to live for._ He let her cry onto his shoulder, smelling the salt of her tears.

Hannah knew he was being nice, but she'd heard over and over again that it wasn't her fault. She just couldn't believe it though. If she hadn't left the oven on overly long, everyone would still be there. She'd still be attending college, she'd still have a home, and a family. _But you wouldn't be in space,_ a little voice in the back of her mind told her. _You wouldn't be in the arms of...an alien?...No, he is Yeyinde._ She took a deep breath and sat up, looking him in the eye, "Thank you. I am sorry for my outburst earlier. I will get stronger." _Sounds like something he'd say, haha!_

Yeyinde looked at her, "you could be a fine warrior. Though it is odd for a female to be a fighter. But your culture allows for that, doesn't it?" _I wonder if she is trying to prove herself a fighter at all? I wish I understood oomans more..._

Nodding, Hannah brushed the tears from her face, "yes, women have equal rights, so we're allowed in the military and everything. At least in America," she added. Suddenly she realized she was on his lap still. "Oh!" She leapt up, her face burning a bright red. "I, I...I'm going to go put the bed up..." She turned and stepped down the hallway to do so. _What was that!? How the hell...!? Ohmygawd!_ Noticing the naxa she'd been eating earlier, laying on a storage container. Picking it it up, she pulled a section off and bit into it, and let out a deep sigh. _Well, that was embarrassing,_ was her conclusion.

"We're approaching your planet! You'd better come strap in," Yeyinde called from the cockpit.

"Coming!" Hannah replied. She took a deep breath, praying her blush wouldn't return, and headed back. Sitting down she strapped in quickly, remembering how he'd done it before. "Alright, so we gonna stock up, then what? And where will we get food from? I have no money, and I doubt you do either," she looked at him, almost proud she'd found a flaw in his plans. _I outsmarted the mighty warrior_ she thought in a sing song voice. 

"I do not need money, I simply get what I want," he told her cooly, working the controls.

"Oh," Hannah said softly, looking at her lap. _Damn._ The trip back was uneventful, and landing was a lot gentler than take off. Pushing the release, Hannah stood up, and threw her coats on, and her bag over her shoulder. "So...now what?"

"I landed us by the next town over, and not too far from it. About a twenty minute walk, at your speed," he told her, putting his armor on. "Remember, once we leave the ship, I will be cloaked, but I will not go far from you. When we reach town, let us return here, in..." he pondered a time frame.

"Two hours?" Hannah suggested, rearranging her coats so that her cleanest was on the outside. She looked out the view ports, seeing the snow on the ground. "Stupid kainde amedha, ruined my coat," she growled, glaring at the white fluffy blanket over the ground as if it was the snow's fault. Checking her shoes, and giving a hole in the right toe a dirty look. "So, that good?" She looked around for Yeyinde, but couldn't find him. "Yeyinde, where are you?" 

Standing only a few feet away, fully cloaked, Yeyinde tried not to laugh at her. _I should teach her to spot a cloaked warrior._ He uncloaked in front of her, "I am here." He reached out and put his hand on her shoulder, turning her to the door. "Go to the town, I will follow you, I promise I will not be far. In fact," he pulled a small oval device from his belt. "This is a communication device that will allow you to speak to me wherever I am on the same planet," he explained to her.

Smiling, she turned and hugged him, "alright, I'll see you in two hours." 

"And I shall see you long before then," he promised her, cloaking himself.

Hannah nodded and walked out the hatch, and into the snow. She pulled her jackets around herself and shivered, then began to trudge to the town. She could see Yeyinde's footprints next to hers, and reached out, touching his arm. "That's just weird seeing your footprints, but not seeing you, guess it's something I'll get used to."

Yeyinde chuckled, "I suppose you will." He looked around, "I must go, we are close to town. I will not be far from you."

Hannah watched as his footprints turned to the left, and he walked away, then the prints disappeared completely. _How the hell...?_ Snow fell from a tree, and she saw where he'd landed on the branches of the oak tree. _That makes sense, but how will he get to town?_ Her question was answered when he leaped from one tree to the next, and continued forward into town that way. _Whoa...didn't see that coming._

Wandering into town, Hannah quietly looked around, watching where people came and went the most. Slowly the five finger discount guidlines played through her mind.  
_**1) Nowhere with a camera.  
2) Big stores only, no ma and pa places.  
3) No more than is easy to run with.  
**_She watched as people exited from a large supermarket in a group, about seven women, and three men. All three men were carrying numerous bags. She chuckled softly, _typical._Looking up at the clock on the bank across the street she saw it was 3:45. Grabbing a little basket, she looped it onto her arm and wandered inside leisurely. Wandering and picking out items she knew would last, along with a little box of strawberries and five kiwi's, she smiled while humming to herself. She took her time, having walked almost thirty minutes to the store, knowing it would be approximately the same back, she tried to estimate her time. Seeing a friendly looking gentleman walk by, she stopped him, "Sir, do you have the time?"

The man looked at his watch, "Its 4:30, miss." He nodded politely and returned to his shopping. 

_Fifteen minutes...alright,_ she thought to herself. Grabbing a few more canned fruit items, she counted down minutes to herself. _Eight more... seven...six_ she tapped her finger on the basket, ticking away the seconds. _Three...two..._ Standing by the door, seeming to look at a display of floral boquets. _NOW!_ She shouted to herself, urging herself to move. She watched as an old lady came in, and the automatic doors opened. There was only a young kid nearby otherwise. Taking flight, she raced out the door, ignoring the alarms. One of the employee's in the parking lot, pushing a stack of carts shouted, and he took off after her.

Hannah cursed, and raced down the street, her coat flying out behind her. This guy was fast, but she'd have to outrun him. He eventually gave up, figuring that she'd only had a small basket, and couldn't have cost them too much. Slowing a bit after she ducked behind a building, she laughed as she caught her breath. "Easier than ever," she chuckled and continued back to the ship, realizing that she'd went further into town. "Damnit!" It was going to take her a little longer to get back. Looking around she walked to the otherside of the street where there weren't people walking, then she pulled out the little communication device and ducked into an alley. "Yeyinde?" She asked quietly, pressing the button on the side down. "Are you there?"

His voice came back puzzled, "There? Where should I be?"

Hannah laughed, "I just meant...oh nevermind. It might take me a little while longer to get back to the ship, I'm a bit further into town than I realized." 

"Do you want me to come and get you? I can move faster even carrying you," he said, matter-of-factly.

Picturing him carrying her, Hannah laughed again. "I don't think me floating through town would be a good image for anyone," she informed him.

"I could cloak you as well, I would not give us away!" He sounded a little offended.

"And how would you find me?" she asked him, thinking she had outsmarted him. _Ha! Didn't think of everything did you, did you big bad hunter guy?_

"I am watching you right now. I have already brought my supplies back to the ship. I have been following you for a while, good running by the way," he told her. She could hear the amusement in his voice.

Whipping around, Hannah looked in every direction. "Where are you!? You little rat! Where are you hiding?" she hissed into the communicator. She about screamed when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Spinning, she saw a man standing there. She quickly stuffed the communicator in her pocket.

"Hey, who ya talking to?" The guy asked. Whiskey poured off his breath. "You're kinda purdy," he slurred.

Not wanting to deal with the guy right now she pushed his hand off her shoulder, "Go back into the bar you creep!" She turned and stalked off towards the main street. The hand returned to her shoulder. _Damn._

"Hey now, c'mon don't be like that lady. I just wanna talk wif ya," he said in an oily voice. "No need to get all rude-like to me." 

"Look, mister, I'm busy. I don't have any spare change for you, and I don't have any spare time for you. Now, get your hand off me, and get away!" She growled at him, very straight-forward.

The man frowned at her, then glared, "Don't you take that tone wif me you lil bitch!" He grabbed her shoulder and yanked her towards him, knocking a can out of her basket. "Now c'mon, let's just be friendly eh?" When she struggled against him, he glared at her again and threw her down, spilling her groceries across the alley. "Stupid little street whore," he slurred.

Quickly grabbing a can of corn, she jumped to her feet and swung it at his head, making contact. He went down in a heap, bleeding from his temple. "Asshole!" Hannah grumbled and swept her food back into the basket, picking up a kiwi that had fallen out of the little baggie they were in, and inspecting it before placing it back with the rest. Her pocket beeped suddenly, causing her to jump. "What the hell!?" She stuffed her hand in and pulled out the communicator. "Yeah?" She asked grumpily.

"Are you alright?" Yeyinde asked in return. _She looks it, and she fought well._ He thought before she answered.

"Twisted my ankle, but I'm fine," she told him, limping a bit as she walked to the street and continued to head towards the ship, knowing Yeyinde would be following. _I should have picked out some deli food to pay at the counter...then I could have had one nice hot meal before we left. Damnit. What's that saying, hindsight's 20/20? Hmph..._ As she continued to walk, her ankle began to ache more and more, until she was very heavily limping and wincing with each step.

"You are hurt," came Yeyinde's voice from behind her. She realized he was walking behind her now, since they were on the road out of town. "Let me carry you?" came his request.

"No," she growled defiantly. "I can make it."

_I'm sure you can, Little Warrior._ "We would get back quicker if you let me carry you. We are beyond sight now," he informed her, walking beside her now, and uncloaking himself to prove his point.

Lifting her chin, she gave an indignant sniff, and continued to walk, trying hard not to limp. "I'm fine," she said.

Shaking his head, Yeyinde didn't push the matter again. They reached the ship, and he uncloaked it, opening the hatch. He looked back at Hannah, and saw blood on her pants leg. "You're bleeding. Why didn't you tell me?" He growled suddenly at her.

Hannah looked at herself, and saw the blood on her leg. "Musta happened when that guy pushed me down," she muttered and shrugged. "No biggie, too cold to feel it anyway." She looked at him skeptically, "why didn't you smell it earlier?"

"I simply did not." He decided not to mention killing a man in town that had seen him, and started yelling about him. He glanced quickly to make sure he'd gotten all the blood off of his ki'cti-pa, his wrist blades. The man had fought back well, and would have made a good trophy, but he couldn't justify bringing it back while he and Hannah were supposed to be getting supplies. He didn't think she'd approve of him hunting instead of stocking up. _Why should she stop me from hunting?_ he suddenly thought to himself.

"C'mon lets get these put away, then I'll clean up my leg," Hannah offered, stepping into the ship.

"I will clean your wound, you wouldn't understand the medical equipment," Yeyinde informed her. 

"Sure, whatever," came her sing song reply, as she stood in front of the cold storage box, placing a few items in it. "Where should I put the stuff that doesn't need to be kept cold?" She called to him, seeing him walking down the hallway to fetch the medkit.

"Back here, there is more storage room," He told her. Grabbing the medkit he opened it, and found a disinfectant cloth. There were only a couple in there, since it was rare to use them. Scars were favorable among his kind. They were viewed as marks of honor, and great battles. "Come here and let me see your wound," he ordered with a sharp bark.

Hannah edged over, "uhm, it's rather high up, I think there must have been glass on the ground. I cant roll my pants up high enough." She looked down at them, not wanting to rip the small hole any larger. Those pants were already barely holding up.

"Then take them off. It will make cleaning the would easier anyway," Yeyinde told her with a shrug.

"WHAT!? You want me to take my pants off!?" She blared in outrage. _What the hell! Who does he think he is! What kind of girl does he take me to be? That little no good rat bas-_

Yeyinde interrupted her thoughts, "I have no interest in taking you as a mate. You are human. Simple as that. Now, remove your pants." He waiting patiently, holding the cloth in his hand.

Grumbling quietly to herself, she unbutton and pulled her pants down, but only far enough to access the wound. She sighed as she saw the seam in her black underwear starting to tear again. She'd have to sew it up later. She was suddenly very aware how glad she was that she wore boy-cut underwear, since they covered the most. Watching Yeyinde inspect her wound she started to blush, and looked away. Pain suddenly erupted on her leg, "WHAT THE HELL!?" Looking back, she saw him pulling out a shard of glass. "Ow!" She gave him a brief glare, "Didn't hurt until you messed with it. Damn." He didn't answer, but pressed the cloth onto her wound after inspecting the shard. The disinfectant bubbled oddly and burned a tad. She hissed and scrunched her face up, biting back a curse. 

Waiting until the pad turned blue, indicating that it was finished, Yeyinde watched Hannah's face. _She is shaping up to be a good warrior. Any other ooman would have wept or screamed._ He pulled the cloth away when it was blue. "Finished," he said, disposing of it, and closing the medkit before returning it to it's place. He handed her the shard of glass that had been in her leg.

Taking the shard from him and looking at it for a second, she chucked it out the open hatch. "Damn little thing," she said as it landed in the snow, leaving a pink streak of her blood. "So, what now?" she asked, looking up at Yeyinde. 

"I know a good planet, that has some creatures we use to train younglings on. Perhaps we will go there, to get you acquainted with hunting strategies?" He looked back at her to see if it was a good idea. Seeing a giant grin on her face he turned to the pilots chair. "Then that is where we will go."

Hannah pulled her pants up, and ran to her seat, strapping in, and waiting patiently. She watched the ground fall away from them, and the sky darken as they took off. When the stars began to sparkle clearly around them in the blackness of space, she hit the release, and wandered back to the fridge, grabbing the box of strawberries, she brought it up with her, and sat down again. Opening the box she saw Yeyinde watching her, a curious rumble coming from his throat. "Want a strawberry?" She offered one with her left hand, while holding another with her right and biting down into the second.

He took the oddly shaped bright red berry from her. Noticing how she held the green leaves, he did the same. Spreading his mandibles apart he took a bite with his inner mouth. A softer rumble erupted from him, followed by a deep happy trilling sound. "These are good. What are they called again?"

"Strawberries." 

**Until next time Kiddies!**


	5. Oh Brother!

Disclaimer: I own nothing, except Hannah and Yeyinde, and now Kec'than. AVP and what all owns everything! Mwahahahaha...oh...  
Everyone else: I think she's off her meds...

**LOVE GOES OUT TO:**  
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"Hannah, will you do me a favor?" Yeyinde asked her after a few minutes of silence. He had been picking at a seed stuck in his teeth.

Hannah looked up from her empty box of strawberries, still chewing on the last one. "Yeh wha?" she asked around the mouthful of berry.

Pointing over his shoulder, Yeyinde looked at her, "There is a bag back by the trophies, could you bring it up here? Don't worry, it isn't heavy." The left engine vent coughed a bit, and the ship tilted. It wasn't felt, but Yeyinde could see the stars shift, and he cursed slightly. Flipping a few switches he stabilized the craft again. He needed repairs, but he couldn't bring Hannah to a station. He wasn't given permission by an elder to mark a human. It had happened before, but without permission, it was a grave offense. Somehow though, he couldn't find his decision to be a mistake. Looking over at the seat Hannah had just vacated, he rumbled pleasantly.

"The brown one?" Hannah called up at him. "Never mind, it's the only one here!" She chuckled to herself, "duh." Walking sheepishly back she sat down. "We call them blonde moments," she told him.

"Blonde moments? Why blonde?" He asked a little puzzled.

Shrugging, Hannah answered, "Blondes are stereotypically idiotic." She held the bag out to him.

"But, you're not idiotic," he insisted, pushing the bag back to her. "That is for you. I figured you'd need them."

"Like I said, stereotypically. And what did you get me?" She opened the large bag and peeked inside. "Clothes!" She cried happily, pulling them out. In the bag were about eight shirts and five pants and a skirt. "They're awesome, how'd you get them?" She held up a dark green t-shirt to her. All the items seemed to fit fine. "And how did you size them?" She wondered.

Yeyinde watched her, rumbling happily. "They were on a rack on the street. I just picked out ones that look like they would fit your body size. Did I get them right?" He wasn't quite sure about some of the other items he saw, so he didn't grab any of them. _She can acquire her own underclothes. She would probably not want me getting them for her anyway._ He had rationalized.

Hannah dropped the clothes in the bag and stood up, reaching over and hugging Yeyinde. "Thank you! Thank you so much!"

He chuckled, "You merely needed them." He continued to monitor the ships flight for a moment. After making sure that the craft was running properly again, he turned and looked at her. "I wasn't sure what kind of clothing your preferred so I tried to get different types, I think." A lot of the clothing had looked so similar to the others and strange to him, he wasn't sure what he was grabbing. He'd tried to grab things that he'd seen other females hold up to their bodies or compare to ones they had. At least, that way he knew approximately what sizes the clothes were and how they were worn.

Hannah gave him a smile, "I'm going to go try them on! Be right back." She dashed off to the back of the ship, and stripped down. She looked the clothes over for a moment and finally picked out a shirt and pair of pants. _This is so amazing! He's so thoughtful, damn why couldn't I find a human Yeyinde?_ So far what she'd seen of his personality, she'd kill to have in a human. _Where did all the good guys go?_ She asked herself with a bright grin on her face. Wearing a red tank top with little stars on the front, and a pair of dark denim blue flares, she walked back up to the cockpit. "These look a lot better than my old things. Thank you so much Yeyinde, this really means a lot to me."

The yaut'ja nodded, "As I said, you merely needed them." He glanced over at her, and clicked approvingly. "They look much better than your old ones," he commented. "They were hardly anything but shreds."

A light suddenly came on, catching his attention. "Hannah, go to the back and stay quiet. I'm going to have to turn off the translator. I will explain later, but you must get back there now." When she started to object, her roared at her, "GO!" Facing the light again he heard her footsteps disappear to the back trophy room. _I knew this would happen sooner or later._ He turned off the translator, so that there wouldn't be any background noise from it, and flipped on the com channels.

"Yeyinde, how unpleasant to see you," came the gravely voice of a male yaut'ja over the com line. "I'd hoped you'd be dead by now."

"What do you want Kec'than?" Yeyinde growled. He had thought that the last time he'd seen Kec'tan would have been exactly that, the last time. "Why don't you go bother someone else?" Not wanting to see the other yaut'ja's face, he left the visual screen off. _I don't have time for this..._

"Oh come now, is that any way to greet your brother?" Kec'than's voice sneered at him. "I just happened to see your ship leaving a hunting system, so I just wanted to hear how your hunt went. I heard you were given three kainde amedha. How did you ever earn that many to take on a hunt?" False surprise dripped from his voice.

Knowing that Kec'than was simply trying to upset him, still Yeyinde struggled not to respond in an outrage. three kainde amedha was one of the lowest number given to warriors for a solo hunt. And he'd only taken the three because he'd been bored. On a normal solo hunt, he would take six or seven. "My hunting is no concern of yours." Kec'than had been a hunter when Yeyinde became a warrior, he moved about with the clan usually. When Yeyinde had gone off on his own, Kec'than had been extremely jealous of his younger brother's independance. But Kec'than had not earned enough kills at that time. About a decade and a half ago, yaut'ja years, however, Kec'than had earned warrior status. He now hunted solo, same as his brother.

"Yeyinde, are you hiding something from me? My scans show another life form in your ship. Ooman as well." Kec'than said wickedly. "Have you picked yourself up a little slave? Does she work any good, I'd love to trade her for mine." Kec'than mentioned his slave, a Tharian female he'd found in a wrecked ship. The Tharian's were a pacifistic race, and had just recently discovered space travel. "It's starting to annoy me with it's constant warbling, I'd much rather it bother you than me."

Yeyinde knew about the slave Kec'than kept, illegally. Beaten and abused. It was dishonorable, completely. But he'd never been caught. He'd never been brougt before the Elders. He'd wanted to take him before them, but had not been able to catch up with Kec'than. The little coward had kept one step ahead of him. He'd chased his brother for years, hoping to catch him. Eventually he'd given up, and figured he'd run across him sooner or later. In the mean time he hunted steadily. Not always many at a time, but he kept his trophy wall full. "Go away Kec'than, you only bring trouble."

The sound of laughter erupted over the com link. "Watch your back Yeyinde. I'll have my eyes on you." The com suddenly shut off, and Kec'than's ship darted away. It was much smaller than Yeyinde's, and didn't have as much room. Reaching down and turning the translator back on, Yeyinde called back to Hannah. "It's safe for you to come back out now." He watched on the screen in front of him as his brother disappeared from his sensor range. _He's still far to close._

"Who were you talking to?" Hannah asked as she sat slowly into her chair.

Yeyinde could smell that she would nervous and he looked over at her. She was staring back at him wide-eyed, her heart rate was raised quite noticeably. He reached a comforting hand to her arm. "It was just a nusance. My younger brother. He is gone now, so there is nothing to worry about." Turning his chair to face her, he rumbled softly.

_Brother? Yeyinde has a brother? Ohgawd, I just realized, I know nothing about him! Hannah you're an idiot!_ "You never told me you had a brother," Hannah said, still feeling a bit stupid for her lack of knowledge on the male in front of her.

"You never asked," Yeyinde replied, a bright amused sparkle in his golden eyes. "But it is best not to speak of him. He's too near being a Bad Blood." At a look of confusion from her, he explained, "a dishonored one, someone who has broken a major rule and is no longer part of the clan. They are often lawless and scoundrels."

"So, he is almost one? Why?" Hannah questioned.

Yeyinde stayed quiet for a moment. "Hannah, would you like to go visit a favorite place of mine? It's a little planet not far from here. Only a few things there to hunt, but plenty of interesting edibles. It would be a nice trip, and a good place to relax." He felt proud of his change of subject, and hoped it had worked.

"Ooh! A vacation!" Hannah exclaimed excitedly, realizing he didn't want to speak of his brother. She let it drop, deciding it was best not to push him. "So only a few things to hunt, like what?"

Hearing her question on hunting, Yeyinde felt proud of her. "There are some large reptiles there," he told her. "Very difficult to find, but they are interesting to hunt. They see in heat, so our cloaking devices are unecessary. They are quick, and can change their color to hide in their surrounding. They're about twice your size," he explained to her. "Do you wish to go on a hunt with me?" He asked, looking sideways at her with an arched eyebrow, in a reflection of her own expression.

Seeing the clearly human expression on the yaut'ja face, Hannah broke down into giggles. "I'd love to hunt with you, Yeyinde," she said trying to choke down her giggles. It was a vain attempt.

Seeing her reaction to his expression, Yeyinde faced her and raised the other eyebrow instead. Hannah erupted in laughter, and he joined her with his own growling laugh. "You humans make some interesting faces."

Hannah nodded, "Your's are as well!" She paused for bit and looked at him silently, "It's a lot more in your eyes that I notice your expressions."

At the solemn sound of her voice, Yeyinde felt his face heat as she spoke, turning a brighter shade of green-gray. "I suppose that would be expected, since you do not have mandibles to recognize the expressions we make with them."

Seeing his face lighten, she realized she had caused him to blush. For the sake of his pride she didn't mention it. "That makes sense," she responded politely. "So when will we reach this planet?"

Glancing at the chart in front of him, "Lev'ic'ta is hours away. We should be there by morning." Setting a few systems on autopilot, and charting their course, Yeyinde turned from the controls. "Let us get some sleep, and we will be there soon."

Suddenly realizing that she was tired, Hannah yawned and nodded, "Sounds like a good idea to me."

Standing and pulling both beds down, he turned and gathered Hannah in his arms, setting her up on her bed, before getting onto his own.

"Thank you, Yeyinde. Good night," Hannah said, tucking her arm beneath her. The ship was warm enough that she didn't need her coats to cover her.

"Sleep well, Little Warrior." Yeyinde said softly, settling into a comfortable position on his back. Since the yaut'ja's backbone was vrey brittle compared to the rest of their bodies, it was common to sleep on their back.

Smiling at the nickname, Hannah yawned again before closing her eyes and letting sleep take her.


	6. Vacation, something's fishy

Disclaimer: yeah yeah, same as always, if you don't get it by now...you're messed up.  
VACATION TIME!

**NOTE:** I'm going to try to get some sketches of stuff from here done, so keep an eye on my deviantart page if you want some images! wolfren89. deviantart. com !

Hannah woke to Yeyinde peering down at her. With a scream, she leapt back and fell off the bed, landing in a jumbled heap. She let out a stream of curses as she righted herself. "Jeeze! Yeyinde! That is not how I want to wake up every morning. No offense, but seriously...that's just down right scary sometimes. At least this early in the morning. My brain isn't even awake yet!" She brushed herself off and looked up at him. "So?"

Yeyinde was watching her with a confused look on his face, "How can your brain not be awake?" He finally asked.

"It's a figure of speech," She told him. "So please, tell me why you woke me like that?" She combed her hair from her face with her hand. "Are we at Lev-i-wherever we're going?"

Catching onto his little joke Hannah's jaw dropped, "why you little crab-faced rat!" She whipped her shoe off and flung it at his head. It missed, but hit his shoulder instead. Bouncing off, it landed not far from him. Stepping back a bit as he stopped and spun to face her with a loud roar. She had to duck as he picked up her shoe and threw it back at her. Without thinking she snatched it out of the air before it hit her. Smiling victoriously, she put it back on. "I used to play softball a lot," She explained uselessly.

"You are a daring little thing. Should we ever meet up with any of my people, I would suggest you behave more," Yeyinde warned her. He punched in a few commands on the consoles, then the hatch opened, and fresh air whipped in around them. He gave a grunt, slightly displeased with the scent of the air. It was too much like the ooman world's air.

Hannah on the other hand, enjoyed the sudden lack of methane in the air. She stepped over to the hatch and drew a deep breath. The air was warm, so she decided to leave her coats on the ship, and grabbed only her shoulder bag.

"Wait. You need a weapon," he said, turning towards the trophy room, which also housed a case full of weapons. Returning with a small cylindrical item, and a couple of daggers, he walked up to Hannah. "These should suit you well. They are for unbloods and the smaller of the young bloods. They should fit your hands." He handed the weapons to her, letting her figure out where to attach them. _I will have to see about getting some weapons made just for her. As long as she is accepted of course, otherwise she'll be-_ Yeyinde cut his thoughts off, not wanting to think about what would happen should she not be accepted by his clan. Noticing her slight struggle to tie on the belt that carried the two daggers, he leaned down and helped her. At times she reminded him of raising a pup. Others, simply a young blood, too eager to learn. He smiled a bit at her in his own way, his top mandibles drawn together, and the bottom ones lowered. "While I said there is not much to hunt, there are still some things that could be dangerous. It is always best to be prepared.

Looking up at her friend, she nodded, "Thank you. You're right, I don't really wanna be anyone's lunch." Peering up at the sky she saw the suns were slowly rising. _Whoa...suns..awesome! It's like Tatooine! Only...not a desert._ "Er..well breakfast I guess." She glanced back at him, and saw that he didn't have his full armor on, just the chest piece that he wore beneath it, and his gauntlets and boots. When he turned to hang his helmet back up on the wall, she saw he wore his full back piece though. "So, what we gonna do?" She asked, bringing herself out of her own thoughts.

"I wish to find more edibles for you. The vegetation here is full of nutrients. They will be good for you," He told her. Even he could tell she looked a little too thin. _I suppose that is what being homeless does to you. Ah, my poor Little Warrior, I will make a fine fighter of you yet._ He vowed to himself. _Maybe then she will be able to stand up for herself in front of the Council of Elders. Perhaps, I can make her such a fighter that she will not only survive the test fight, but maybe even win..._ A cough from Hannah brought him out of his thoughts. "Come, lets go. There is also a lake nearby, with good fish to eat!" He told her excitedly, the fish there being one of his favorite meals. He remembered his older sister cooking it when he was a pup. She'd taken care of him after his mother had passed away. He had admired his sister very much. Once promising he'd find a mate that was just like her. The smile on her face when he told her that, and her trill of laughter had made him happy for days. _One day Kec'than, I will prove that you had a hand in her death. One day, soon._ He growled darkly, and let out a small hiss.

Startled, Hannah stumbled slightly when he growled. She could tell he was angry about something. _Did I do something wrong?_ She instantly thought back to all that had happened since she woke up. _The shoe?_ "Yeyinde," She asked cautiously, "what's wrong?" She took a couple of long strides to catch up to him, since he walked faster than her. Reaching out her hand, she touched his arm. "Are you angry with me?"

Yeyinde stopped and looked down at her, "No, Little Warrior, I am not angry at you. Forgive me, I was far away in my mind." He gave her a smile and ruffled her hair. Looking forward again he could see the sunlight glint off the lake. "We are not far from the lake. There are fish and sweet berries waiting for us!" He looked down at her again, "shall we race?"

Sticking her hand on her hip, Hannah raised an eyebrow. "Yeyinde, I have to trot to keep up with you while you're walking! How in the seven hells am I supposed to keep up while you're running?"

"You believe there are seven hells?" Yeyinde asked, partly ignoring the rest. _She will learn speed._ He looked up at the suns, wondering how there could be seven hells. He didn't notice for a second that Hannah had taken off running. She was faster than he'd thought. But he caught up with her soon enough. Slowing as he reached her, he kept next to her. "Relax your breathing and run on the ball of your feet," He instructed. "Good, yes like that," was his compliment when she'd done as he asked, taking a stride ahead of him now. He moved forward with her, "Much easier is it not?"

Smiling to herself, Hannah answered, "much. But I'm still not as fast as you!" They reached the waters edge and slowed down, coming to a stop in front of it. The lake was surrounded by trees, and the sunlight lit up the water perfectly. It looked a deep blue, fading into purple in the middle. "That is beautiful! But why is it purple?" She asked him.

"It is the rocks beneath the water. As it gets deeper, the water looks purple," He answered with a shrug. He glanced at her, then back at the water, his eyes gleaming mischievously. Walking up behind her as she was looking at the shallows, he suddenly lifted her off the ground and tossed her to the deeper water. Ducking as the water splashed back at him he laughed.

Hannah screamed as she was suddenly lifted from the ground, and found herself in water a moment later. She kicked furiously until she broke surface and swam skillfully to the shore. "You horrid crab-faced turn-coat little wretch!" She yelled at him. Standing in front of him, dripping wet she glared up at him defiantly. "If I were stronger or you were weaker, I'd throw you in, but I can't. So I will get you back, somehow. I don't know when, but I will." With that said, she turned and stalked off, seeing a large rock that was already getting warm from the two suns. She climbed up onto the rock and flopped onto her back, feeling the sunlight on her skin. Seeing a small pebble by her hand, she picked it up, and turned to look at Yeyinde, throwing it at him.

The rock hit his side and bounced off harmlessly. He looked over at her, clicking his mandibles. "Is that how you intend to get me back?" He asked with a soft chuckled growl.

Hannah turned back around and looked up at the sky, "Nope, that was just me pestering you." She smiled to herself and yawned, enjoying the sunlight. After being in space the last couple days she'd missed it. Closing her eyes she took a deep breath. "So, what kinda stuff we looking for?" She asked him, trying to convince her body to move to look over at him. Finally her head turned and her eyes opened slowly. Seeing him standing by a small fire that he'd built, she smiled.

"I am going to get fish to eat, then we shall find some edibles that you like." He grabbed his spear and walk out into the water. He stood there for a long time, spear raised and ready to strike. He didn't move at all.

Hannah jumped slightly when he finally plunged his spear into the water, and pulled it back. On the end was a fish, speared through the head. She smiled and crawled down off her rock. "That was awesome! You've got to show me how!" She called from the shore.

He waded back towards her, looking at the fish. Once he got there, he pulled the fish off, and a pale blue blood trickled from it. It' scales were a soft blue as well, though the fin going down it's back looked rather mean. It was jagged and had little barbs all along the length of it. "Be careful not to touch the back fin. It will slice your hand open before you even realize you've touched it," Yeyinde warned her.

Watching him gut and clean the fish, she waited patiently, kneeling in the sand. Once he got the fish over the fire, on a stick skewer, Hannah nibbled anxiously on her bottom lip. The aroma was more than enticing. Her stomach growled demandingly and she blushed. "Heh, I guess I am pretty hungry."

Yeyinde stood up, "While that one cooks, let me teach you how to catch them." He grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. "It takes patience. And you must remember that the water distorts the image. The fish is not where it seems to be. Instead aim a little beneath it," He told her as they waded out to knee depth. Well, it was knee deep on him, almost waist deep on Hannah. He took some time to show her how to hold the spear. It was pretty large for her, so he eventually let her use her smaller one. "They have a thick skin, so you must throw hard," He told her, watching her as she held the spear up. "Steady, don't let yourself move so much," He instructed, keeping his voice low. She stilled, but he could see her having trouble standing in the water. "Whenever you think you are ready, go ahead."

Hannah gave a slight nod, and watched a particular fish that was closest to her. It darted back and forth, nibbling on some of the aquatic plant life. When it stopped at one and settled to eating, she decided it was time to try for it. Aiming just below it's head, she thrust the spear forward with all her strength. Her foot slipped at the last moment and she fell into the water with a screech. Thrashing a bit until she caught onto Yeyinde's arm and pulled herself up, coughing up the water she'd swallowed, she looked around for the spear. Yeyinde had it.

Watching Hannah's attempt, Yeyinde growled a chuckle as she fell into the water. He held his hand down, and felt her grab him and pull herself upright again. He had grabbed the spear when she fell, and held it up, showing the fish stuck on the end of it. "A good catch, but you need to watch where you're standing." He chuckled again and helped her walk back to shore. She was limping slightly and it worried him a bit. "Are you hurt?" He asked when she finally sat by the fire.

Looking up at him Hannah sighed, "I think I just twisted my ankle when I fell. I'll be okay." She looked at the fish, and smiled, "At least I got dinner, eh?" Before she could say more, a crash sounded off in the woods. She'd had her hand out, reaching for the spear when it happened. Yeyinde jumped and turned, and in doing so, whipped the fish against her hand. The barbed fin sliced the side of her left hand open cleanly. She bit back a cry of pain, knowing whatever they heard make that loud noise was probably more important that a cut on her hand. Clutching her injured hand to her chest, she looked around. "What is it?" She whispered fearfully.

"Remember those reptiles I told you about?" He said in a quiet and deeper voice. "That was one of them. Stay here, I'm going to scout it out. Stay close to the fire. If you see it, get back up on that rock you were on earlier. They do not climb well." With that said, he ran off at an amazing speed into the woods. He looked around for the creature, with his ki'cti-pa, his wrist blades, out already. Catching the scent of one of the creatures, he followed it. It was stalking towards Hannah. _They are attracted to blood. Perhaps she cut herself?_ He could faintly remember the scent of blood when he'd run off after the creature. He'd been too focused on it to actually notice the scent at first, but now that he thought back on it he realized that he had caught the scent of Hannah's blood. _C'jit! I should have noticed!_ Turning towards the shore again, he made is way toward Hannah. Coming into the clearing, he found her up on her rock, her leg bleeding, fearfully looking down at one of the reptiles as it paced and snapped it's jaws at her. There was another a little further away, waddling towards the rock. A small trickle of blood ran down the side of the rock, dripping into a little puddle in the sand. This angered Yeyinde and he roared out a challenge with his mandibles flared.

Hannah heard Yeyinde's roar and looked up at him. "Oh you brute! I've never been so happy to see you!" She said with a slight whimper as she moved her injured leg. This hunt wasn't going well. They'd snuck up on her as she was trying to bind the cut on her hand. Her weapons lay beside the fire, where she'd taken them off, so she could get to the pack easier and get her first aid supplies. _That was a dumb move Hannah!_ She berated herself. Watching the creatures turn to face Yeyinde, she wondered if she could sneak down and grab her daggers, or the spear once they'd moved off a ways. Pulling her bleeding leg beneath her, she gasped as pain laced up it. Taking a deep breath against the pain, she calmly ignored it, and looked at her daggers, then at the creatures waddling quickly towards her friend. With a leap she was off the rock and half way to her weapons. Using her good leg, she took a long stride towards them, and snatched up the spear, whirling around to face the creatures. The one that had already slashed her leg turned towards her again. It was the smaller of the two. It scrambled towards her, and she moved back a bit, trying to figure out the best place to strike at it. _Brains...always a good way to kill something. Dunno where it's heart is, so brains it is!_ She waited until it was a little closer, then used both arms and drove the spear forwards. The creature snapped at it, and caught it. With a twist of it's head, Hannah was thrown to the side. She cried out in pain as she landed on her bad leg. Rolling as an attempt to dampen the pain she ended up by the fire. Grabbing her two daggers, and unsheathing them as quickly as she could, she looked back at the creature. It was waddling towards her, and only about ten feet away. She readied the long daggers and took a deep breath. The creature lunged at her, and she jumped up trying to avoid its fangs. One slashed a mark on her arm, and another on her wrist. She almost dropped the dagger in her left hand. Her right hand swung around and sunk the dagger into the creatures left eye. It howled eerily, and fell silent at her feet. She looked back at Yeyinde and saw him watching her, the other creature already dispatched.

Once he had killed the fatter reptile, he turned to help Hannah, but saw that, although she was injured, she was fighting well on her own. She was definitely a survivor. He smiled as her dagger sunk into the head of her prey. It was a good kill, though it may have damaged the skull a little. When she turned to look at him, ready to fight still, he felt pride swell up in him. Walking over he took her shoulders and pulled her close to him. "You fought well, Little Warrior. Very well." He picked her up and took her over to the fire. "Let me see your leg."

Hannah was surprised when he lifted her and carried her to the fire, but pulled up her pants leg anyway. On her calf was a deep gash that was still bleeding horribly. Looking at that and her left arm with it's three cuts, she realized she looked a mess. "Well, at least it's all only on one side. If I only face one way, no one will notice, right?" She joked, looking up at him.

Yeyinde shook his head, "Hannah, no. Scars are to be shown with pride. They make us who we are. They are our stories and our history. Yours were earned very honorably today. Show them with pride." He patted her knee, and pulled out a vial of some strange liquid. "This may hurt," He warned, before slathering some of the blue stuff on her leg.

Hannah screamed and tried in vain to hit his arm away. It burned and sent pain ten times as bad as the original cut up her leg. "MIGHT! THAT SHIT HURTS!" She shouted. Tears welled up in her eyes and trickled down her cheeks as the pain began to ease a bit. "Ow." Was all she said after that. When he applied the stuff to her arm and hand, she braced herself and shut her eyes tightly. Opening one eye she saw him placing the stuff in a slot on his belt. She sighed and looked at the fire. One of the fish slices had fallen in and burned, the other looked almost black. Her fish had yet to be cut. "Well, shall we attempt dinner again? I'm starved."

Yeyinde nodded, "Our trophies can wait until we eat." He frowned at the look of the fish he'd started cooking. Pulling the burning one away from the fire he looked it over, before shrugging and biting into it anyway. The strong flavor of the fish masked the burnt taste. It was a pleasant spicy taste.

Hannah started to clean her fish the way her father had once taught her. Once that was done she stuck it on a couple of skewers that hadn't been broken by the fighting, and stuck the fish over the fire. "Uhm, Yeyinde, can you see if there are more of the reptiles around?" She asked nervously.

Looking around the area Yeyinde shook his head, "There are no others." He took another bite, and said, "Tor'kae. They are called Tor'kae." When Hannah stood and started to walk off, he grabbed her uninjured wrist. "Where are you going? You should not wander off."

Hannah blushed a deep red, "I'm just going off a little ways. I'll be fine." When it looked like he was about to argue, she placed her hands on her hips, "I have to take care of some business, you don't need to come along, get it?"

Yeyinde turned to the fire quickly. "Alright, but not too far away." He listened as she continued to walk away, "And bury it!" He called after her.

"I planned to!" She called back, taking out the wider of the two daggers. She dug herself a nice hole before taking care of business. A story about her great- grandfather accidentally using a stinging nettle as toilet paper crossed her mind as she looked at the leaves around her. She sighed to herself and shook her head. This was going to be an interesting visit. She also needed to ask Yeyinde about the facilities on his ship. _What's the name of his ship again...Ga..Gwa..Gw? It was something like that...Gwan. Oh! Guan-Thwei! Wonder what it means..._

Yeyinde sat and chuckled at himself. He watched as she walked back towards him, still limping a bit. He had turned her fish while she was gone, so it would cook evenly. She noticed and thanked him for it. He looked at them for a moment, "They should be cooked now," He told her, taking the last bite of his own. The fish were as long as his forearm, so it was almost a decent meal.

Hannah bit into the fish and raised her eyebrows. "This is great!" She said, before taking another bite and chewing happily. Looking at the large piece of fish in her hands, she glanced at the other. "I'm not going to be able to eat the whole thing, my stomach just isn't big enough. Why don't you have the other, I'd hate to waste it." She told him, taking another large bite. He turned down her offer and she responded with, "I'll be very upset if you don't. Refusing is extremely rude!" He finally gave in, and she continued to eat happily at her fish. "What are the fish called?"

"Bor'dhe," He stated simply between bites.

"They'd be really great sautéed in butter, with a little bit of green onion," She contemplated it for a moment. "Yeah, that'd really be great. Maybe even a fresh clove of garlic, that would really go well with it." Hannah remembered cooking a lot, back before she'd been evicted when she couldn't pay her bills any longer. She used to love to cook. "Yeyinde, will we be able to make other stops at Earth, maybe later on?" She asked him suddenly.

After thinking a moment, he nodded, "Yes that would be easy. But we'd have to refuel more often." He pulled a bone from between the teeth on his inner mouth.

"Oh, I don't want to have to cost you anything. We don't have to return." Hannah said, looking down at the fish in her hands.

Yeyinde laughed, "It does not cost me, I am a warrior. We get to fuel for free." He had finished his second piece now, and threw the stick to the side, leaning back he looked at her. "One day you will be a warrior. After you are accepted into the clan. You are already marked, so that is in good favor for you."

Taking the last bite of her piece, she chewed thoughtfully. "Will it be hard, to be accepted? Do you think it will happen?" She looked worriedly up at him.

"Yes I do. But we will not try for a while. First we will make you into a fine hunter," He stood up and brushed the sand from him. "Come, let us go to where the fruit tree's are, and see what is to your liking." He offered her his hand to help her up.

Smiling brightly, she took his hand and stood. "Sounds like a good idea."

**Until next time kiddies!**


	7. Fruit of Love

Disclaimer: I wish...but I dont.

_**Hannah's Fruits and Veggies List**_  
**Cor'li: **_Core-lee_ Looks like a red-orange artichoke. Very bitter.  
**Ki'rich: **_Kee-rick_ White fuzzless peach, with dark purple inside. Strong, sugary flavor.  
**Ghe'chk: **_Gei-chook_ Yellow eggplant, with dark yellow lines coming from the bottom. Flavorless large seeds. Very medicinal  
**Ver'tik: **_Verh-tick_ Large white root, like a carrot. Has dark green wide leaves.

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Hannah followed Yeyinde towards sunrise for a pretty long while. "So, how far are these trees anyway? We've been walking for a while now," She said, swatting a bug away from her face.

Yeyinde chuckled, "It is not far. You will have to be ready for long travels." He looked ahead and saw that the trees were just a short distance away. "There, we are almost to the groves."

Hannah looked up excitedly, clapping quickly, "awesome!" She skipped forward in high leaps. "Where to start, where to start?" She pondered, looking at the different colored fruit on the many trees. "Any suggestions?" Looking over at an amused Yeyinde, she smiled broadly. "Which do you prefer?"

_She's just an overgrown pup._ He thought, watching her antics. He looked up at the branches above them, and pulled down a reddish orange fruit, that had little prickly spines on it in sections. Pulling back the outter ones, he let them drop to the ground, and handed Hannah one of the inner spines, before taking one himself and biting into the softer inside part of the section. He looked at Hannah to see what her reaction to the fruit would be, and burst out in laughter.

Hannah stood, grimacing as the bitter taste of the fruit filled her mouth. She turned and spit it out before it made her feel sick. "Ok, what was that? It was gross!" She turned and spit again, trying to get the horrible taste out of her mouth.

"That, Little Warrior, was Cor'li. Very good for you. When you run out of energy, it is a very good boost. Good to have on long hunts." He smiled, taking another bite. "But I'm afraid the taste is something you must adjust to." He tossed the rest of the fruit to the side, before looking up at the branches again, and moving to a different tree. Pulling down what looked like a white peach, he handed it to Hannah. "Ki'rich, This should be more to your liking."

Sniffing at the white fuzzless peach she looked up at Yeyinde. When he simply told her to bite, she did as she was instructed, and bit into the fruit. Purple juice splashed onto her face around her mouth, and the meat of the fruit just seemed to melt in her mouth. Her eyes widened and she looked up at Yeyinde, "This is amazing!" She took another bite, quite sure that this was going to be her favorite.

Reaching out, Yeyinde patted her head, "Just do not eat too many. They have some digestive side effects." He moved a couple trees down, and pulled down eggplant shaped fruit. It was yellow with darker yellow lines coming up from the bottom of it. He took it and broke it open, pulling out some pink colored seeds from the inside. They were pretty large seeds, about the size of a quarter at least, "Ghe'chk. Very useful. They have many medicinal purposes, as ingested medication." He handed her half of the fruit, and pulled another seed out, popping it into his mouth.

Watching how his mandibles flared as he put the seed into his inner mouth, Hannah smiled. _I should really be freaked out by all this..._ Her mind reminded her in a sing-song voice. _On an alien planet, eating alien fruit, with a really..._She paused and looked at Yeyinde. didn't know how exactly she wanted to describe him. He was so many good things, but still, he was alien. _Almost like some creature you'd see in Doctor Who...strange and sophisticated, and civilized, in their own way. And of course the Doctor would be popping out, going on and on about them. Their history, their culture, all sorts of things about them. Gawd would that ever be handy!_ She picked out one of the seeds and sniffed it experamentally. It didn't smell sour like the first thing they'd tried. She popped the entire seed into her mouth and bit down. It was pleasantly crisp and crunchy. She smiled and chewed. It did however lack flavor. It was like chewing on a rice cake. _Health food, even alien health food, will always taste bad, _She joked. Looking back up at Yeyinde she saw him watching her intently. "Why are you staring?"

"I want to make sure you do not have any adverse reaction to any of the fruit you are trying." He looked around, and saw only one more type of fruit left. It was blue, and lumpy looking. Reaching up he pulled down the darkest one he could find, and handed it to Hannah. "The'na, a very popular fruit, though it doesn't last long in storage. Just bite into it." Pulling down another one for himself, he spread his mandibles and bit into it, stabbing it with one mandible, and holding it to eat. 

Hannah bit into it. It had the texture of a banana, but tasted sweet, like honey. The meat was a little darker blue that the thin skin. She smiled and continued to eat it, balancing the Ghe'chk and the Ki'rich in her other hand. The blue pigment of the The'na added to the purple stains from the Ki'rich. Her face was now a muddled mess of color.

Yeyinde chuckled and reached out, taking the fruit from her and tossing it away, ignoring her protests. "You do not want to fill up on them, we have much more to find today." He looked at her face and saw that the fruit had stained it and he groaned. "I should have warned you, forgive me. But the fruit stains very badly. Your face may need many days until it returns to it's normal color." He smiled apologetically, trying to mimick one of her expressions by raising his eyebrows and tilting his head down while looking at her. "But it is a very nice color for you." Suddenly thinking about it, he realized that she did not know that it was unusal for him to see in color. "And coming from a yaut'ja, that is a strange compliment indeed. Most of us cannot see in color like you do, only a few," He explained to her.

Forgetting the stains she looked at him, "so I take you see in color." When he nodded at her, she smiled. "That's awesome. I'll bet that's fun for you." Looking over at the discarded fruit, Hannah frowned slightly. It had been very good, and she very much wanted to finish it. "So, now what are we going to look for?" Her gaze returned to her friend, and she pondered him for a moment. His gray skin with it's mottled dark green blotches. His yellow eyes that were shadowed by his protruding eybrows, and his elongated forhead, with thick short black hairs. The dreadlocks that hung long behind him, reaching well past his waist, with silver and bone spirals encircling them. His face faded into a mouth. It was a strange mouth to her, but somehow she'd gotten used to it. With it's two larger mandibles on the bottom, and the two slightly smaller ones above them. The skin between could almost cover his inner mouth, with it's two rows of sharp little teeth, completely. She noticed for the first time that on the left side of his mouth, there was a small peice missing from the skin between his upper and lower mandibles. _Wonder what did that..._

Yeyinde gave a soft growl and she looked up at him suddenly. He rumbled slightly at her. "You were staring at me. Tell me, what were you seeing?" He asked her.

Hannah blushed. "I, well, I guess I'd never really looked at you. I mean, I've looked at you, but I haven't really...**looked** at you. I was just...some details and..stuff..." Becoming extremely embarrassed now, she looked away. Her eyes caught some movement in the bushes a little ways away, and saw a small creature scamper out and snatch up one of the fruits Yeyinde had tossed aside. It looked, as close as she could place it, like a squirrel. Only with an extra set of forelegs, two tails, and large ears. It's fur was a muddy brown color, and it chittered happily to itself at it's find. Hannah couldn't help but smile seeing it.

Following her gaze, Yeyinde saw the rodent creature. "A Kir'bal'yae," he told her nodding at it creature. "Smart little things, they can somehow see us cloaked and tend to let out little warning signals to the rest of the creatures. Makes the hunts here more challenging." He watched her for a second. "You're fond of animals, arn't you?"

Tearing her gaze from the adorable little thing, she looked up at her friend. "Yeah, I used to have a bunch of cats, and a dog or two." She smiled, thinking back about them. The cats had ran off when the house had burned, and one dog died in it. The other she gave to a family that had been wanting a pet. It was a well behaved golden retriever. "So, other foods?" She asked, looking back at the Kir'bal'yae for a moment, watching it dart away into the bushes when Yeyinde turned and looked around.

"Yes, there are some vegetables, there is a patch of them not far from here." He told her turning a little towards sunset, and walking off.

Hannah sighed, "not far...heard that before..." She was sure Yeyinde had heard her grumble because he had growled out a laugh. "Well, you've got longer legs! I have to move twice as fast to keep up with you!" 

Looking down at the short female Yeyinde playfully threatened, "I could carry you over my shoulder."

With a glare, Hannah huffed indignantly, and strode forward, trying to out pace him. She knew it was a vain attempt, since he could easily out distance her if he wanted, but it made her feel better in a silly sort of way. She glanced up back at him and smiled a bit, "I wouldn't like that at all."

Watching Hannah's playful attempt at anger, Yeyinde smiled. "Very well, you should learn to make long treks anyway. Many hunts will pull a hunter far from his, or in your case her, ship. Journey's back can be long and tiring after a hunt." He took the lead again, "But do not worry, the patch is not as far as the trees were. We are almost there. Look, you can see the bushes from here."

Hannah looked ahead and saw an area of extremely dark green foliage. "Whoa...that dark stuff?" She stepped over a fallen log, and walked up to the darker flora. She turned and looked at Yeyinde, a bit confused. "So...what are we looking for?"

Bending down, he grabbed one of the dark green plants, and tore it out of the ground. A root a little larger than his forearm came out with it. It was a pure pearly white. Wiping off dirt, he handed it to Hannah, "Ver'tik root. Very good in stew."

She stumbled back under the weight of it, ending up falling on her butt. Yelping as she landed, she looked accusingly up at Yeyinde. The root lay by her knees, and she looked at it. "That thing is heavy!" She stood up and brushed herself off, reaching down and lifting the root, shaking beneath it's weight. "I don't think this is gonna work," she puffed out between grunts as her muscles protested.

Yeyinde took the root back, much to Hannah's relief. "Ah, that is my strong Little Warrior," He chuckled and patted her head with one hand. "I will gather a few more, then we will take them to the ship, and I have sacks for the fruit we wish to collect." He turned and picked out another large root, larger than the first. After gathering four of the roots, he grabbed them by the green leaves on the top of them, and carried them over his shoulder. 

Hannah walked along side of him, her ankle began to hurt slightly. She tried her hardest to hide her limp from her friend, but soon found herself failing. Biting her lip to keep herself from whimpering, she realized she'd fallen behind, and Yeyinde was watching her. _C'mon Hannah! Damn! Just. Keep. Moving. Can't you stop limping! Geeze!_ She tried to stop her limp again, but her ankle finally gave out beneath her, and she fell to the dirt. Tears stung at her eyes, angry that she couldn't stop her limp. She glared at her clenched fists in the dirt until she felt a large hand on her shoulder.

Yeyinde set the roots down and walked over to her. He'd been watching her, watching how well she dealt with the pain he knew her ankle was causing her. Looking at her face he realized that she was angry. _She did so well..._ He shook his head softly, "You expect too much of yourself so soon. Come, I will carry you back to the ship." He gathered his Little Warrior in his arms, and turned around and carried her back to the ship, the Ver'tik roots forgotten. At first he ignored her protests at being carried, but eventually quieted them with a fierce growl.

Hannah huffed and sat quietly, though indignantly, in his arms. Her ankle felt much better now that she'd gotten her weight off of it. After a slightly angry moment she sighed, realizing he was only helping her. She leaned her head against his shoulder, "Thank you, Yeyinde." Pausing for a moment she added, "For everything. And even if...even if I don't get accepted by your clan, I want to thank you for bringing me this far." She looked up at him with a gentle smile, "It's like...something out of a dream, ya know? Or in some fantasy story book. Some poor, unnoticed worthless girl, meets some amazing guy and he whisks her away to a new world full of adventure. A world where she's happy and can..." She suddenly stopped talking. The words 'can fall in love' almost came out of her mouth. Looking away again she blinked, _Love? Hannah, you have looked at him recently right? His face...those mandibles, the little mouth behind them., the forhead the size of texas, his little eyes...seriously?_ When she glanced back at him, his face didn't scare her, or revolt her at all. He intrigued her. She found herself staring at him for a moment longer than necessary, and whipped her eyes to the ground. Leaning her head once again against his shoulder, she cleared all the those thoughts from her mind, and simply rested against him.

Pondering everything she'd said, Yeyinde walked back to the ship in silence. _One would think her world would be better suited for her. She's so used to it, but... to say that this life is better..._ He paused, balancing her in one arm to open the hatch. _She definately will be a hunter! One day. _Setting her on one of the storage benches he lifted her leg and pulled her shoe from her tender foot. The ankle in question was twice the size it should have been. He sighed and put his mask on, looking into it. The ligiments were stretched, but not torn. And the bones were not broken. It would take longer to heal, but she would be fine. He pulled a soft pouch out of one of the storage boxes and shook it, placing it on Hannah's ankle.

She hissed in pain at the cold pack set on her ankle. Watching him, she'd not realized what he was doing until the pack touched her ankle. "Ow!" She objected quietly, figuring it best not to disturb him. "So, doc, how bad is it?" She asked teasingly.

"You've simply stretched the ligiments. Had you torn them or broken them, it would not have been so easy to repair you," Yeyinde told her, putting his mask away.

"Repair me? You make me sound like some computer or machine. I'm far more complicated than that!" She looked up at him with a goofy smile.

With a chuckle he replied, "barely, you are still human afterall." His eyes twinkled, giving away his own teasing. "Now, come, I will set you up front where you will be more comfortable. Then I should go and fetch supplies, and our trophies." He cursed himself silently for forgetting them. He'd been too worried about Hannah to remember them. _But at least she is well,_ He assured himself, and he carried her to the copilots seat. Setting her down in it, he realized she was dwarfed by the sheer size of the chairs. She was female, and as small as an older pup, but he did not look onto her as his daughter, no it was something else. He shook his head a bit, "I will go fetch supplies now."

Hannah nodded and watched him leave after grabbing a handful of large sacks that she was sure he could easily fit her in. The image of him picking fruit like a orchard worker entered her mind, and she laughed at it. Him, the hunter of the stars, picking in a orchard. She shook her head and contemplated her previous thoughts. It was a lot easier now that she was alone. While she loved Yeyinde's company, thinking about him while he was with her made thinking clearly quite difficult. _Love him or not, there's no way he's going to love you back. That sorta crap only happens in romance novels._ She sighed and shook her head. "Hannah, silly girl, you've read far too many of those things, they're cluttering your mind," She said outloud to herself. She sat in the chair thinking to herself, until she nodded off.

Yeyinde walked back into the _Gwan-Thei_ with two bags of fruits and roots. He heard a strange sound and snuck up to the cockpit to find Hannah asleep in her chair, snoring softly. Not at all the same sound she made when she slept on her bed. Figuring it was the way she was laying, he shrugged it off and went to store the supplies. Once he was done, he set to cleaning the trophies of their kills, cleaning Hannah's as well, since the reptiles skin tended to stain the skull a strange color after death if left on too long. He didn't want to wake her, so he did it himself. Once they were cleaned and hung, he wandered back to the cockpit. He was restless, but did not want to leave Hannah, nor did he want to wake her. Sitting in his seat, he looked at her for a moment. _Why do you affect me so? Even a yaut'ja female could not make me so docile. But you, a ooman... I want to... _He paused in his own thoughts, what did he want? _I want you Hannah._ Feeling the carnal nature of the statement he reconsidered it, _No, I want you with me, always._ Reaching out a clawed finger, he brushed a bit of hair out of her face so that he could see her better. It was not unheard of, taking a mate out of species, but...a ooman? They are a prey species, cattle for the Kainde Amedha. He **may** be able to get her accept to the clan, but to take her as a mate? It would never be accepted... unless... _When she wakes, I will speak to her_ He decided, then turned to the control panel and pulled up his last system diagonistic. He figured he'd get some repairs done while she slept.


	8. Avoidance

Disclaimer: Hasn't changed...whoever own AVP and other such stuff owns the world, I just play in it sometimes.

Thank you so much for all the reviews I get! They are awesome!  
Mostly people hate his brother, love their developing feelings, and can't wait to see what happens. Though there are the occasional crazy reviews, they make this fun for me! So please, keep reviewing!

Much loves everyone!

I know, I know it's short, but the next chappie is on it's way, I promise!

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Setting to work on some minor engine repairs that could be taken care of without stopping at a repair station, Yeyinde tried to keep quiet. He didn't want Hannah to wake just yet, he was nervous about what he wanted to talk about. He supposed it would be easy, _But...what if I say something wrong? What if she...NO! Don't think about it, just let things happen the way the fates have planned them. Do not force your destiny, it will find you when you are ready._ He quoted an old teacher of his, who taught him just out of puphood. It had been so long ago, he was a little suprised that he'd even remembered it.

Peering into the engine casing, the pulsating lights met his eyes. He blinked as his eyes adjusted, and looked around for the burnt out circut that his diagnostics had reported before. When he found it in the back of the casing, he reached in and disconnected it. Looking it over, her realized it was completely useless. He tossed it aside and pulled out a new one from the storage bins near the midsection. Once he got it attached and rerouted the power through it, he nodded to himself, pleased as it pulsated along with the rest of the circuts. He glanced at the powercells in the engine, one was partial, the other was damaged, but surprisingly still working. _Paya blessed, kept me alive so far. Definately need to get it fixed, before it starts to leak into the rest of the engine. That would require an entire rehaul of the ship. No way can I earn that any time soon._ He sighed and closed the engine casing, putting his tools back in their bin. Listening closely he could hear Hannah humming from the cockpit. _Great..._ Now he had to face her, with all that he wanted to say, right on the tip of his tounge. He wondered if he'd be able to say it at all.

Waking and finding Yeyinde not in sight, Hannah paused, hearing him in the engine room. She figured he was working, so she leaned back and yawned. _That was so weird, I could swear I dreamed Yeyinde was here...he touched my face..._ When he walked into the cockpit with her, she blinked a couple times, thrusting those thoughts to the back of her mind to inspect later, though she'd probably forget about them, like she did about everything else she put back there to think on later. "What'cha been doing back there?" She asked him. 

"Just had some minor engine repairs that needed some attention. The engine's should run much more smoothly." He pulled up his last diagnostics report and looked it over. "Stabalizers are getting a little shaky, I'll work on them next." _NO! You will, WILL, talk to her! NOW!_ He stared blankly at the report on the screen in front of him. "Hannah...I wanted to ask..." His voice trailed off as he began to lose his nerve. _Oh mighty hunter, you can bring down some of the most worthy prey, but you cannot simply talk to a female?_ He berated himself, not noticing that there was a long and silent pause between them.

Hannah broke it, "Yeyinde, may I stay with you? I mean... if your clan accepts me, can I still stay with you?" She looked up at him, meeting his golden yellow gaze. "I know I should be strong, but it's, well, scary really. Just the thought, what if I can't? What if-"

Yeyinde cut her off, "You may stay with me for as long as you wish." He purred quietly. It was an instant reaction to purr for an upset female. Often times, it was a life-saving reaction. Yaut'ja females were much larger than the males, and could be quiet a problem when upset. He had a scar on his left shoulder from angering his half-sister once. Perhaps he should not have mocked her choice in a mate, but he was young and stupid then. "If you do not want to leave, you do not need too. I will not let anyone take you away from me, do not worry, Little Warrior." 

She smiled, growing fond of his nickname for her. She wasn't quite sure she filled the title, but she definately wanted to try her hardest to. She had come to realize that she wanted to make him happy to have her around, but most of all she wanted to make him proud. _Just not the fatherly type of proud,_ she reminded herself. It would be far to strange for her to have these developing feelings for a father figure. _Not that it would matter, there's no way they could be reciprocated._ Her inner self grinned, _Well that's my two dollar word for the day!_ She looked away and scowled, it was not the time to be goofing off! She sighed and looked back at him with a smile. "So what's our plan for the day?"

Yeyinde was almost relieved when she ended the serious conversation. "I think we should attempt more fish, and put them in deep freeze. Not as good as fresh fish, but still better than surviving on fruits alone." He closed the diagonistic and stood up.

Hannah lept up, making sure not to put her weight on her injured ankle. "Awesome! That fish was really good! Next time we go to earth, I'll pick up a few supplies, and then I'll fix you up some of that fish, real tasty!"

With a chuckle, he followed as she grabbed her bag before walking outside. He clipped his mask on, and grabbed his combistick, extending it and looking it over, before retracting it and attaching it to his belt. He attached a smaller one to his forearm, shaking his head. _She will learn to take weapons with her, but she will aparantly learn the hard way._ Until then, he'd carry extra on him just to be sure. He glanced at her two daggers she'd left behind. Grabbing one, he slipped it onto his belt as well, then followed Hannah outside. Hannah was already a ways ahead, and he opened his stride, catching up with her easily. "What do you intend to fish with?" He asked her.

"Oh!" Hannah spun and looked up with him, her hands covering her mouth and her eyes wide. "I forgot! I'll run back and grab something." She turned to go but Yeyinde grabbed her shoulder. When she turned back to look at him, he held out the smaller spear to her, unextended. "Oh! Yeyinde thank you! I would forget my own head if it wasn't attached!"

Confused for a moment by her statement, he blinked rapidly a couple times, before deciding to ignore it. "Well, for now I'll keep an eye on what you forget, but soon I will not, and you will have to remember on your own. Otherwise, you'll be caught by prey without a weapon. Then you will no longer be the hunter." He patted her head patronizingly, earning him a glare. With a laugh he walked forward, letting her follow him, but keeping check on her to make sure she did not fall too far behind. They made it to the lake quickly and stood in front of the glittering water.

Hannah scrambled up on her rock and stood up, looking over the lake, and taking a deep breath of cool air. She could taste the water on the air. Closing her eyes she sighed happily, feeling much better than she had in years. Opening her eyes again, she looked to her right to see Yeyinde watching her contemplatively. "Don't you dare throw me in the water again," she told him in a cold monotonous voice that she'd learned from one of her high school teachers. It struck fear in many people, though more often when Ms. Mikton used it. Though she could see a slight hesitation flicker over Yeyinde.

_Tell me she's not angry!_ His mind pleaded. He turned to the water, hating that she had the tone that his mother had used when she was angry. "I was not even thinking of doing such!" With a chitter of annoyance, he began to wade out into the lake. He wanted to catch only a few larger fish, rather than many small ones.

Hannah watched as he caught the first one, and thought that they looked like giant blue koi fish. Well, except for the evil sharp fins. Looking down at her hand she sighed. "Certainly make a lot of mistakes, Hannah. You're an idiot." She muttered to herself. Turning her gaze back upon Yeyinde. He was standing, poised to strike again. Clambering down from her rock, she waded into the water, as deep as her thighs. With her combistick extended, she stood still, watching for her prey. _This is probably how their children learn to hunt. Is he teaching me like a kid?_ She wondered as she watched a large dark blue fish. His fins looked menacing, and her hand itched slightly where she'd been cut by the other fish's fin. Her arm was feeling a little numb, the blood running down out of it. She figured her knuckles were white by now. Her gaze focused on her strike point, exactly where she wanted that fish to be when she struck. It was lazily turning back and forth, slowly inching closer and closer to it's execution. With a twitch of a smile, Hannah struck. Standing still for a moment, she pulled her spear back, smiling as she saw the large dark blue scaled body on the end of it. Looking up at Yeyinde, she saw him watching her and nodding. She turned and waded back to shore, feeling the twin suns heat drying the water from her. It was a slow, but surprisingly comfortable heat. She waited by the shore for Yeyinde to wade back in as well.

Yeyinde smiled, feeling pride for his human companion. The fish she'd caught was much larger than the one's he was bringing in. Trudging back through the waist deep water, he let it pour off of him as he rose out of the water. Coming up to Hannah, he took her combistick from her, inspecting her kill. The fish twitched once and was still. With a nod, he clicked his approval. "Very good kill. You will be a fine hunter one day," He told her.

Hannah smiled brightly at his praise. "So, we gonna cut and dry? Or do you want to freeze them?" She looked at her fish, then at the ones he'd caught, and tried to hide her grin. _I GOT THE BIG ONE! Haha!_ The picture of a grandpa/father and a child fishing, with the child catching the bigger fish ran through her head. This time she had yet to hurt herself, or do anything stupid, and this made her quite relieved. _At least this time I don't look like a complete idiot in front of Yeyinde. Well, not this time at least, no promises on next time._

"They will last longer if they are dried, but I do not want to linger here that long. There are other places I want to show you." He turned and walked to Hannah's rock, leaning against it, he started to gut and clean the fish. "Hannah, would you please go back to the Gwan-thwei and make sure there is room in the food storage for these?" He looked up from his work.

Nodding, Hannah smiled, "Sure. Fridge space is always nice." She turned to go, hesitated, then turned back and walked up to him. Pulling her dagger from his belt, she smiled up at him again, and left for the ship. _Glad I saw it on his belt! I don't want to wander around unarmed._

Watching her walk away with her dagger in hand, Yeyinde nodded, proud of her for remembering a weapon. She was better with the daggers than the combistick. He would have to work on them with her, get her used to them. They were very useful on hunts, so she should be able to use them. Looking back at the fish in his hands. Continuing to clean it, he rumbled, pleased with how everything had been turning out lately. Though his brother crossed his mind and he growled angrily. Why is it that the idiot can ruin even his pleasant thoughts? And what was he doing in the area? He was supposed to be out on a long range hunt. Why was he here now? These questions still plauged Yeyinde even as he was walking back to the ship a short time later, with the cleaned peices of fish, all skewered on Hannahs combistick. The scent of blood reached him. Human blood. Throwing the fish down, he ran towards the ship with a challening roar.

Hannah had reached the ship, humming a tune to herself. She smiled as what looked like an alien butterfly flitted by in front of her. It has six wings, the two in front and in back shorter than the ones in the middle, making it look round. _Ooh! Maybe I'll sketch that later,_ She thought to herself. Reaching the ship, she walked in the open hatch, forgetting that Yeyinde had closed it when they left. Stepping over to the cold food storage lightly, she didn't notice that she wasn't alone. Her mind was focused too much on Yeyinde's pride in her. It was too late that she finally noticed she was standing only a little ways from a dark skinned yaut'ja male. She tried to scream, but he struck her across her face, knocking her back against the wall. Her head hit the wall hard and she fell unconscious onto the floor, blood trickling from her head.

The male walked over and bent down to look at her. _Ooman...so weak._ He chuckled and turned back to the controls, looking over the past flight plan. Two trips to the ooman world? One hunt there, one unknown. He growled in disgust. Turning to look back a the unconscious lump, he returned to it, taking its face in his clawed fingers and turning it towards him. She bore the clan mark! A ooman! Growling furiously, he roughly let go of her face. He should just kill it here and now. Extending his ki'cti'pa to do just that, he was stopped when a combistick knocked his hand away from the ooman. Looking up to see who had struck him, he clicked his mandibles, pleased. "Hello, Brother."


	9. You

Disclaimer: If only wishes came true...But Hannah, Yeyinde, regretfully Kec'than, and now Ti'ka'il are mine.

Kittyn: Oooh! A little bit of action in this chapter!

Hannah & Yeyinde: What!?

Kittyn: not that kind of action, perverts!

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Seeing his brothers wristblades so close to Hannah, Yeyinde lept forward without thinking and struck out with his combistick. Once the blades were futher from Hannah, he paused as his brother greeted him in a cold sinister tone, trying to plan out his next move. He needed to get Kec'than away from Hannah somehow. Preferably outside. He also knew that Kec'than knew what he was thinking. But he still had to try.

"So, is this your little pet? I see you've marked her with the clan mark. Do the elders know this? From that look in your eyes, I don't think they do. Perhaps I should tell them, so they can come kill her. Or perhaps, I should do it myself and save them the trouble." Kec'than purred oily. He brought his wristblade down to her face, dragging the tip across her cheek, not quite cutting her, but drawing a red scratch line on her pale skin. His eyes never left Yeyinde.

Yeyinde growled and tensed, ready to kill his brother now. They were not on hunt, and his brother was threatening his hunting partner's life. It was still legal to kill. Not the highest honor, but this definately brought his brother into the lower class of BadBloods. He had every right to kill him. He growled and risked a quick glance to the onboard visual recorder. It was still running, so he'd have proof that Kec'than was indeed a BadBlood now. _There is also the fact that Hannah is on those tapes. I will only be able to prove his status if I can get her accepted into the clan._ Looking back at his brother, he saw a pleased expression on his brothers face. This disturbed Yeyinde, it was not an expression that preceded anything good.

"No matter what I do now, you can't show anyone anything. At least not until you get this human accepted. And we both know how long it takes to get into a different clan for a yaut'ja. But for a human? It should take forever, if it happens at all!" Kec'than chuckled, "it would probably be best for her to just die now, don't you think?" His wristblades rested against her throat. The dark yellow eyes glinted joyfully. "Come now Yeyinde, do be reasonable. She is a weak human."

Yeyinde hissed angrily, "I think that her strength will be judged by the council, not you. However, I do wish to judge your strength now." 

Kec'than thought for a second. _If I just kill her now, I wont stand a chance against an angry Yeyinde._ He looked at his older brother contemplatively, _Alright, this looks like fun._ "Fine, but lets make a deal. Winner gets the human." _I suppose I could say, winner kills the ooman._ He chuckled to himself, standing up, knowing that Yeyinde would not attack, since he favored fair sparring.

Yeyinde backed out of the ship, not wanting to let Kec'than pass him, knowing that he would try something. Kec'than followed, stepping away from Hannah. Yeyinde felt himself relax a bit now that his brother was not so close to her. He did not want to fight so close to Hannah, afraid that she could be hurt accidentally. He could never forgive himself if he allowed her to die because of his mistakes.

"So, brother, now what is it we do? Sit and talk of old times, or do you actually plan to fight me for real?" Kec'than laughed, "I mean, you didn't last time, what makes you so sure you will now?" He taunted his brother.

Yeyinde ducked into a fighting position, and stayed silent. _This time, I have something to fight for. Someone to fight for._ He lunged forward, stabbing with his combistick and slicing with his wristblades. Kec'than only managed to dodge the spear, but the wristblades slashed his thigh.

Roaring in pain, Kec'than extended his own wristblades and opened up a gash on Yeyinde's arm. Both of their blood splashed onto the ground, and Kec'than laughed. "It feels good doesn't it, brother?"

Yeyinde stepped back, stretching his arm to see how badly it had been wounded. "You talk too much," he said as he lunged forward again, this time sweeping his combistick at Kec'than, pushing him back towards one of the larger trees native to the planet. His wounded arm was slower than usual, and his attack was blocked halfway through. Kec'than had grabbed his combistick and roared in Yeyinde's face, hoping to aggrivate his brother further. Yeyinde growled and jabbed his wristblades forward, hoping to puncture Kec'than's abdomen. Kec'than blocked him, so that he only made a small nick in his side, rather than his gut. Yeyinde's mandibles clicked in frustration as Kec'than avoided his blades.

As his wrist guards deflected Yeyinde's wristblades, Kec'than laughed and swiped his as his brother's throat. The tip of the blades came close, but Yeyinde managed to throw himself backwards in time to avoid them. Yanking his brother's spear forward, he leapt at Yeyinde, drawing his own combistick and driving it toward his brother. It missed his chest, and sunk into the soft ground.

Avoiding yet another blow, Yeyinde quickly moved back to recover and ready himself for another attack. He readied his combistick and crouched low, tense and ready to lunge forward. Kec'than retrieved his combistick from the ground, and crouched as well. They circled for a short time, eyeing each other, calculating their next move, and their opponents next move.

Kec'than roared and rushed forward, driving his combistick out from the side facing Yeyinde so as to attack, and offer his brother a smaller target for a counter attack. The tip of the spear sunk into Yeyinde's side. The injured male hissed angrily, not allowing his brother the pleasure of a roar of pain. Kec'than growled, displeased by his brothers silence. He yanked his combistick back and stepped back, and swung it up, successfully disarming his brother.

Yeyinde's combistick flew up into the air, and fell end over end far from him. He growled and used his injured arm to swing his wristblades down at Kec'than. His younger brother brought his combistick up to block the attack, and Yeyinde rumbled in delite. He brought his other arm up, driving his wristblades up under Kec'than's rib cage. He could see the surprise in his brother's eyes, and he roared his victory as the light faded from Kec'than's eyes. Tearing his arm back, the body fell from his now bright green coated blades.

Panting, Yeyinde turned back to the Gwan-thwei, and staggered towards it. He approached Hannah, and knelt beside her. She was barely breathing, and there was a lot of blood pooled around her head. Fear rushed through him, fear that she would not survive. "Hannah!" He murmered urgently, "Be strong, for me." He stood and stumbled to the medkit, and brought it back to her, tending to her wound gently. _Hannah, you cannot die! You can't!_ He mentally urged her on, wishing he could do more for her.

After tending to his own wounds, and putting Hannah up on her bed, he tried to make her as comfortable as possible, and sat in the pilots chair, keeping watch on her. Eventually he fell asleep, his body recovering from his own wounds. He woke again sometime the next day, a cold sweat covering him. He jumped up and checked on Hannah, who was still unconscious, to remind himself that she was still alive and his dreams were simply dreams. She was breathing better, and her pulse was stronger, but she was no closer to being conscious than she had been before. His heart raced as she suddenly stopped breathing for a moment, before taking a gasping breath again. She made a slight whimpering sound, causing Yeyinde to purr as an instant reaction. He put his hand on her forhead, and felt it quite warm to how she normally felt. This worried him. He sat back down, wishing he'd paid more attention when his oldest sister had nursed their younger sister to health once.

A thought crossed his mind, and he turned to the controls. Sending out a deepspace message to his oldest sister, he prayed to Paya for a reply. He almost leapt from his seat when it came minutes later. Tapping a button, his sister face came on the screen. "Ti'ka'il!" He was so glad to see her.

"What is it Yeyinde? You realize I was just about to sleep." She asked grumpily.

"I am sorry," he apologized. "Ti'ka'il, I need your help. Is this channel secure?" When she nodded, he continued, "I have taken a hunting partner, but...my partner is ooman." He paused, expecting her to be surprised, but she calmly accepted it.

"I heard that one of our hunters also honored a human female during his Kainde Amedha Chiva." She tapped her mandibles together thoughtfully, "you've picked a female, havn't you?" When Yeyinde nodded, she chuckled. "What help of mine do you need?"

When he explained recent events to her, her face darkened at his news about their brother Kec'than. "It is no less than I expected from him. You have done us all a favor." She paused for a moment, looking at something off screen. "Get back into your bed, it's far too late for you to be up." She admonished one of her pups off screen.

Yeyinde smiled, she was always so good with pups, even the rowdy uncooperative ones obeyed her. She had a calm demeanor that pups seemed to respect. She had often watched his pups while he was away on hunts after one of his mates had been killed over mating rights with a different male. Ti'ka'il was actually watching his youngest pup right now. It was still close to infancy, it's mother had been killed in an engineering accident. A joke running around their clan was that he was a bad luck mate, three of his past mates having died not long after bearing him pups.

"Ta'ki'il, I do not know what to do. She is feverish, and has stopped breathing twice now. The first time scared me, but the second time...I thought she would not start to breathe again. What do I do?" He looked at her pleadingly.

Sensing her brother's distress she made a soft humming noise that she used to quiet infant pups, and closed her eyes. Yeyinde knew she was thinking so he did not interrupt. She opened her pale yellow eyes and sighed, "I will come to you. It should only take me a few hours, Det'kin'da recently got a new ship, so it should not take me long." Her mate was very high ranked, though she was not, but they had fallen in love, and became lifemates anyway.

Yeyinde leaned back, relieved. "I'll send you my coordinates."

"Don't bother, I know where you are." She rose and bowed her head respectfully, "you are where you always go." She bade him farewell and switch the comm off. 

Turning back to face Hannah, Yeyinde rose and looked down at her, stroking her hair. "Help is coming. Don't worry." On impulse he bent down and ran his mandibles over her forehead, opposite her wound. He stayed leaned close to her for a while. Chuckling to himself he gave a resigned rumble, _I can't fight it anymore, I love her._ He brushed the hair from her face and whispered the same to her. After a few more minutes of standing over her, listening to her breathe, he returned to his seat and watched her. Her breathing stopped again, and he closed his eyes, waiting anxiously for her next breath. He had never heard her have this issue before, but often he was sound asleep when she was. He'd also never paid this close of attention to her as she slept. _I should have, I would have known if this was normal for her or not!_ He berated himself.

It was a few hours later that Ti'ka'il arrived, with her youngest pup. It was an infant still, she'd had it only half a season ago. Yeyinde ran to the hatch to open it for her, and she walked in with a joyful face to see her brother. "I am glad to see you alive, Yeyinde." She set her son down, "Where is she?"

Pointing to Hannah's bed he said, "Over there. She's been sleeping, but she stops breathing, a lot." Hannah did just that at the moment, "See?"

Ti'ka'il walked over and looked at the human laying on the drop down bed. "It's infected, and there may be some fracturing. It seems she was struck quite hard." She pulled a bag from her belt and opened it, up-ending the contents on the bed beside Hannah. An array of bottles and containers of all sorts of liquids and gels tumbled forth. After inspecting a few, she finally opened one and applied the contents to the gash on the side of Hannah's head. She opened a small jar and applied it to her head as well. Opening a bottle she poured a little into Hannah's mouth. "That should take care of the infection, help it heal faster, and help bring her fever down." Ti'ka'il said, placing everything back into her bag. "You really should have learned some of this when I offered to teach you before. If you had, I wouldn't have had to make this trip!" She turned to face her brother and placed her hand on his shoulder, giving it a slight shake.

Returning the guesture, Yeyinde looked sheepish. "I know that now, but I do thank you for coming down. She wouldn't have made it without your help." He looked over at Hannah, relived that she should get better soon.

Watching her brother's face as he looked at the human female, Ti'ka'il recognized his expression and clicked her mandibles thoughtfully. "Well, if there isn't anything else?"

Looking back at his sister, Yeyinde nodded, "Her breathing. When she stops, why?" 

Ti'ka'il shook her head, "I cannot tell you. I could not see any reason for it. I am sorry. Perhaps if I had a medbay, I could run some scans, but here without equipment, I'm sorry." She patted his shoulder, "She should be awake soon, then you will not have to worry." She bent and scooped up her son from where he had been crawling. The baby started to whine, and Ti'ka'il hummed soothingly. "I will see you when you can return home." 

Yeyinde was glad that she understood his predicament. "Hopefully she will soon be a great hunter, and will be accepted. I too want to return home as well."

When Ti'ka'il had left, Yeyinde wandered over to Hannah, inspecting her wound. It looked a lot better, if a bit oddly colored due to the ointments his sister had put on the gash. "Hannah, you're so little, yet you cause me so much grief. Ah, my Little Warrior," he closed his eyes and shook his head, wondering how he got himself into this situation. He fell back into his chair and put his head in his hands. He stayed still for a long while, until he heard a murmer of noise and a groan. He whipped his head up to see Hannah moving, and slowly sitting up. He rushed over to her side, "Hannah, you should lay down, don't move too much. You need to rest." 

Looking up at him she blinked, "Yeyinde? What happened?" Her hand moved up to her head, it was pounding so hard she almost wanted to cry. When her fingers touched the gash she hissed in a breath of air and winced.

Resisting the urge to sweep her into his arms, Yeyinde explained everything that had happened, at least as far as he knew what had happened. "How are you feeling?"

Swinging her legs down from the bed, she looked at him, "I'm feeling fine." She hopped off the bed, and fell onto the floor. "Just a little dizzy apparantly." She pulled her knees to her chest and looked up at him with a sheepish grin. "Well, that didn't go as smoothly as planned." Her head was throbbing still and she rested it on her knees. _Stupid! STUPID HANNAH! HOW THE HELL!?_ She mentally kicked herself for being such an idiot. "If..if only I'd seen him." Tears welled in her eyes.

Sensing there to be a problem, Yeyinde dropped to the ground beside her, and purred softly. He wanted to reach out and hold her, but he wasn't sure how she'd react.

As they sat on the floor by the wall Hannah tried her best not to cry in front of Yeyinde. She wanted to be strong for him, no matter how bad she felt. "I'm sorry, I guess I was just too lost in thought, I," she faultered. "I didn't see him. I should have, but I didn't. I'm sorry." Hannah looked down at the floorplating, not wanting to meet his gaze. Her face was red with shame, the cut on her forehead still bled slightly.

Ignoring her shame and uncertainess, Yeyinde put his hand on her back and pulled her closer so she was facing him. "Tell me what your mind was caught on, we will work through it and I will help you learn to be in thought and still aware of your surroundings." When she blushed further he chuckled slightly. "You need not be embarrassed to speak to me of anything. I have sisters and female cousins who lived nearby, I am not above speaking of female problems." Looking at her face again he tilted his head, "or emotions." _Perhaps she is homesick?_ "Please, Hannah, tell me what you are thinking off."

Shaking her head, not raising her eyes, she said quietly, "no." _How can I tell him? How do you tell someone you were daydreaming about them?_

"Hannah, please. I want us to be completely honest and open. Hunting pairs keep no secrets, it is not safe." His thumb rubbed over the back of her neck relaxingly. _It must be she has someone at home, a mate? No, most likely a prospective mate._ "Hannah, do you love someone?" He found himself holding his breath, a knot forming in his stomach, dreading her answer.

She bit back a whimper as she relaxed against his hand. Closing her eyes briefly, gathering courage, she looked up and whispered, "You." 

**until next time kiddies!**


	10. Courtship

DISCLAIMER: AVP owns all the cool stuff, I owns me Hannah, Yeyinde, Kec'than, Ti'ka'il, and anyone you don't recognize! 

Hannah: Your grammar fails.

KittynJ.: Shuddup! I'll end you!

Hannah: eep!

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She bit back a whimper as she relaxed against his hand. Closing her eyes briefly, gathering courage, she looked up and whispered, "You."

Yeyinde stared at her for a moment, taking in what she had just revealed. _Me? She...loves...me? me?_ For a moment he forgot to breathe, and took a deep breath, coughing suddenly.

Completely misunderstanding him, Hannah panicked. _Oh! Shit! He doesn't feel anywhere the same! Of course not! How could he?_ She lept up, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Yeyinde." Not knowing what else to say, but wanting to get away from it, she turned and sprinted out the hatch, not sure where she was running, just letting her legs carry her away.

Once his coughing subsided, Yeyinde tried to explain that he felt the same, but Hannah bolted before he could. _Pauk!_ He lept up to run after her, slamming his shoulder on the bed. Growling slightly in annoyance, he shoved it closed and ran out the hatch after the female. Seeing her running off towards the fruit orchards, he pursued her at a light pace. His longer legs caught up with her easily, and he reached forward and snatched her.

Suddenly feeling arms around her stomach, Hannah screamed and kicked, until she realized it was Yeyinde, and she felt herself go slack. When he set her down again, she turned to face him. "I'm sorry, I'll understand if you want to take me back to earth and leave me there." She didn't know what else to say. Staring down at the ground she waited for his reply, sure that he would agree to take her back and leave her.

Shocked at her idea of returning to earth, Yeyinde reached out and picked her up, pulling her close to him and holding her there. "I do not wish for you to leave, Hannah, for I feel the same as you. But if you want to return to your home, I will take you there." He prayed she would say that she wanted to stay with him, that she didn't really want to return home. His prayers were answered.

"You...you do Yeyinde?" She looked up at him, puzzled. "But I thought..." She paused for a moment then smiled, "Oh!" Flinging her arms around his neck she embraced him as tightly as she could. "I don't want to leave you, not ever," She murmured against his tough skin. "I want to stay with you."

Relaxing at her words, he turned and carried her back to the ship. She fit perfectly in his arms, and he loved how she felt against him. It made him feel stronger, and protective. He loved how she made him feel. Upon returning to the ship, Yeyinde sat down in the pilots chair, leaning back as far as it would, keeping Hannah in his arms. Her hand stroked the side of his face, making him purr softly. He closed his eyes, focusing on the feel of her hand on his skin. A tender touch meant only for him. 

Hannah smiled as he closed his eyes, purring to her. Leaning up slightly, she kissed his lower right mandible softly, causing him to open his eyes in surprise. Giggling, she laid her head against his shoulder and sighed happily. Everything was turning out wonderfully. "Are you sure this isn't a dream? I wont wake up under the bridge on eigth street?" She asked him softly.

Turning to her, he answered in kind, "No, Hannah, this is real. You are real, and I am real. We are here together." He stroked her shoulder and kept her close to him. In time her breathing evened out, and he realized she was asleep again. _She is still recovering, she still needs sleep._ Looking up at her closed bed, Yeyinde clicked his mandibles, and decided not to move. Adjusting his position slightly, he let Hannah nap on him. Leaning his head down to hers, he took a deep breath, soaking in her scent. He caught the smell of his own musk on her, feeling happy about it. But also the scent of his brother was still on her, and that angered him. Without realizing it, he growled suddenly, and Hannah mewled in her sleep, moving a bit. Yeyinde calmed down, and began purring again to comfort her. He'd have her go bathe in the lake later, for now he was content on holding her.

The comm button lit up suddenly, and Yeyinde carefully reached over to see who was hailing him, keeping an eye on Hannah to make sure he didn't wake her in the process. It was his sister. Flipping the comm on to both audio and visual he turned the chair slightly to face her more. "Ti'ka'il," he greeted her quietly.

Mirth bubbled into her eyes, "Yeyinde, I just contacted you to see how our patient was doing, but from the looks of things, everything seems fine." Ti'ka'il laughed softly. "So I take it, the two of you spoke?"

"Yes, how did you know?" Yeyinde asked, purring softly to Hannah still. He rubbed her back now, too.

"I saw the way you watched her when she was injured. I figured that for someone to draw that much emotion out of you, they had to feel the same way." She became more serious, "Turn the chair so I can see her injured side." When he complied, Ti'ka'il clicked her mandibles thoughfully, "Hmmm... well it looks to be healing fine. I want you to monitor her blood for infection for the next few days, just to be on the safe side." Leaning back in her chair, she smiled. "You always were the different one, weren't you Yeyinde? Always had to do something different. And now look at you, you've off and fallen in love with a ooman!" She giggled, "Though I'll assume by the smaller weapons that had been used recently, she is a hunter as well?"

Nodding proudly, Yeyinde looked down at his love, "Yes, I have been training her." He paused for a moment, "there is hope... right? She could be accepted, right?" Looking worridly up at his sister's image he waited for her answer. 

Ti'ka'il closed her eyes, "I only have some influence, but I do think that it could happen." She opened her eyes, "You are creating a trophy wall of her kills, correct?"

Yeyinde nodded, "of course!" He said it a bit too loudly and Hannah stirred again. Continuing quietly, "of course I have! She's already got Kainde Amedha and Tor'kae. I plan on hunting on a few different planets still. I have plenty of time before I need to refuel. And if I have to before she can be revealed, I will take her to her planet to stay until I am done."

Ti'ka'il smiled, "you have thought that out well." The medic in her surfaced, "Yeyinde, answer me on this, do you intend to take her to mate?" She wore such a serious expression, Yeyinde didn't answer at first.

"Well, I uh, I hadn't thought of that. I just..." He fumbled for words, looking down at the sleeping female in his arms, "I just love her, Ti'ka'il, I can't help but love her." He stroked her cheek with the pad of his thumb. 

Watching her brother, she nodded, "Alright, but before you do, I want to examine her, to make sure you wont accidentally hurt her." She knew he'd agree to that, which he did. "What is your next stop, Havvati I'm guessing?"

Yeyinde laughed silently, "You know me far too well sister. Yes, tomorrow we will be heading there. After Hannah washes off the stench of Kec'than."

Ti'ka'il narrowed her eyes, "He didn't...?"

Shaking his head, Yeyinde answered, "no, he didn't do anything like that. If he had, he would still be alive now, dieing slowly, and painfully." His eyes flashed at the thought of it. She may not be his mate yet, but he was as protective of her as if she was.

"Ah good. Then I will meet you on Havvati tomorrow. Take care, brother," She reached forward to switch off the comm, but the last few seconds were full of her reprimanding a pup for stealing food from the store room.

Yeyinde chuckled, "she's always so busy, how does she have time for anything?" He purred again, running his mandibles over Hannah's forehead tenderly. Leaning back, he closed his eyes as well, letting himself nod off for a short nap.

Hannah woke, stiffening at first, until she realized where she was. _Yeyinde_, she glanced up at him and smiled. He was a sleep, his upper right mandible twitching slightly. Trying not to giggle, she yawned, waking him up. 

Blinking rapidly for a second, Yeyinde looked down at Hannah and purred, holding her a bit tighter. "Sleep well, Little Warrior?" He bent and ran his mandibles down the side of her face, loving how she tilted her head to leave him more room.

The stroking of the surprisingly sharp tips felt good, and Hannah tilted her head, closing her eyes with a sigh of delight. "I slept wonderfully, Yeyinde." She finally said when he pulled away. She turned and leaned up, kissing his cheek softly. "And you?" 

"The best I've ever slept, since you were close to me," he told her. Letting her stand up, he watched her stretch back and yawn again. The sudden coldness of his lap disappointed him, but he knew he could not keep her there forever, though not that he wouldn't like to try. He rumbled quietly, intrigued by her. Reaching out he wrapped a strand of her light brown hair around his finger. It was soft and spun around his finger, falling away like mist.

Looking back at Yeyinde, Hannah smiled. "Different hair, yeah." She wandered back to where her spare clothes were, "I'm going to the lake, I want to bathe," She called to him from the back room. Coming out she stifled another yawn, "I wont be long, I hope..." 

_Read my mind..._ "Alright, take weapons." He stood, "Do you want me to come with you?" _Great...now she'll think that I'm perverted._ "I mean...to watch out for tor'kae and...I just...I don't want to let you out of my sight right now." He said the last part quickly, sure that if he didn't say it fast, he wouldn't say it all.

Hannah paused and smiled, giving him a wink, "Only if you promise not to peek!" She snatched up her combistick and a dagger, attaching them before following Yeyinde out of the ship. Her head was still a bit sore, but doing much better than she figured it had been. "Thank's for patching up my head," She said as they walked.

"I did not do it. My sister, Ti'ka'il did," He looked down to see her reaction. "She already likes you."

Hannah nodded, "ok." She wasn't sure what to say about it other than, "remind me to thank her if I ever meet her." She hooked her left arm around his right wrist, and walked along beside him, watching the clouds and overall enjoying the scenery.

Yeyinde rumbled and purred, "So, I take it, you'd accept my offer to court you?" He looked down at her, watching her face.

"If that's your way of asking a girl out, yeah," She winked up at him. "We call it dating, but yeah." Leaning a bit closer into him she smiled widely and walked with a cheerful bounce in her step. "And as such, you would be my boyfriend, and I your girlfriend." She mulled the idea around in her mind, _My otherwordly boyfriend? no...my alien boyfriend? no...my yaut'ja boyfriend? no...my boyfriend._

"Then I am your...boyfriend," He said decidingly. "And you are my girlfriend." _Strange terms, but I can understand them._ He couldn't believe he was actually courting her. He had been so sure that she didn't return his feelings at all.

Hannah couldn't help but giggle at hearing him say that. "Yeah, exactly," she said after stifling her laughter. They reached the lake only a moment later and Hannah stopped and stood directly infront of Yeyinde with her eyebrows raised.

Yeyinde chuckled and turned around. "I will not 'peek' at you. You have my word." He flicked his mask on, and scanned the area around them. Content that it was clear, he relaxed and turned his attention to listening to her. He heard her clothes fall to the sand, and her footsteps in the water. Her gasp when she first touched the cool water, and a whine as she moved deeper into it. He fought the urge to turn around and look. It became more and more difficult as he heard her move about. His mind flashed back to when he had thrown her into the lake. Still not quite sure what had possessed him to do so, he chittered amusedly. He could still see her face and hear her promise to get even with him. _Which she still hasn't..._ He began to wonder about what she would do to get even. Part of him even worried about it. _And just what could a little thing like her do?_ He chuckled.

"You're not watching are you?" Hannah asked, hearing him laugh. She looked over her shoulder at him, watching as he had his back to her. _Doesn't look like he was..._

"I was not watching you, Hannah. I was just thinking about something else. Are you almost finished?" He wanted to get back to the ship, it was nearing nightfall, and he wanted to get everything ready to leave the next day to Havvati. 

Hannah smiled, "Do you want me clean or not?" She waded back anyway, feeling clean enough. Using her old shirt to pat herself dry, she put on her new set of clothes. It was another pair of pants and a baby blue shirt that read, "Hottie" across the front. Not her usual sort of saying for a shirt. She liked the ones with jokes or funny pictures on them, _But beggars can't be choosers!_ Once she had the clothes on, she ran over to Yeyinde and touched his arm. "Thank you."

Yeyinde looked down at her, her hair dripping onto her shirt, turning spots of it a darker blue. He bent down and kissed her forehead. "Come, let's get back to the ship. I'm anxious to leave in the morning. We're going to meet my sister on a different planet." He waited as she grabbed her things and followed him back towards the ship. "I am hoping she will bring Ik'yed'a." He paused, _Humans do not mate as we do, for offspring...perhaps I should tell her, so she is not surprised? Or...just...I...pauk._

"Who?" Hannah asked, looking at an orange flower as they were walking by it. She resisted the urge to pick it, remembering from far distant biology class that poisonous plants or critters were often bright colors. While she didn't know if this particular plant was, she didn't want to risk it.

"Ik'yed'a is...he is my infant son." Once again, he rushed it all out, waiting for her response with his heart beating loudly in his ears. _What if she doesn't want to stay with me?_ He knew he could do nothing about his family, but he wanted Hannah to stay with him.

"You have kids!" Hannah squealed exceitedly, "That's amazing! How many? How old? Will I get to meet them all?" She trotted to catch up to him and look up at his face.

Once again, relief washed over Yeyinde as Hannah once again, accepted everything about him. "I do not know if you will get to meet them all, some are grown and on their own. But most likely you will meet my three youngest...no perhaps only my two youngest." He placed his hand on her back as she walked along side him.

"Awesome," She leaned her head affectionately against his side for a moment, then suddenly darted forward, running to the ship.

Confused, Yeyinde picked up his pace, staying a bit behind her. Once they were in the ship he looked at Hannah and tilted his head.

"Sorry, just felt like running all of a sudden." She shrugged and smiled sheepishly. Putting her clothes away she put her weapons away as well. Returning to the main room, and sitting on a storage bin, Hannah looked up at Yeyinde. "So, gonna tell me what happened with your kid's mothers? I mean...I know what happened, obviously, but...how come you're not with them? Or are you?" _Polygamy is possible I suppose,_ That idea sat a little uncomfortably with her.

"None of them were my lifemates. Yaut'ja often breed simply for genetically strong children." He shrugged, "I hadn't yet found my lifemate among any of our females." He held a hand out to her, and drew her to him when she took it. "And I think I now know why," he said, before kissing her cheek again. Holding her close for a while, he purred contentedly.

Hannah snuggled into him, feeling that everything was just right with him. "Yeyinde, I'm starting to think you're absolutely perfect," she said quietly, smiling still.

He snorted, "I doubt that. Maybe you are, though." He kissed the top of her wet head. "And that's why I want to keep you, as long as I can." He felt a sudden pain, remember that humans did not live as long as his kind. _Some time with her is worth all the universe. I would rather have her for a while, than not have her ever._

Hannah nodded, "It is better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all." _I knew that quote would come in handy,_ she thought.

"I swear you just read my mind, Little Warrior," He murmered against her head. She smelled nothing like his late brother anymore. Now she smelled like lakewater and herself. He wrapped his arms around her better, _And soon to also carry my scent._ He felt proud of her, thinking back on everything she'd accomplished so far and so suddenly. It must have been a major upset to her normal life. No wonder she was afraid she'd wake up back on her world somewhere. It must seem so unreal. _It does, sort of... It's just hard to believe. Hard, but not impossible,_ Afterall, there she was, in his arms. Nothing felt impossible when she was around. Absolutely nothing.

After a moment, Yeyinde groaned, "I need to take care of preparations. Leaving in the morning." 

Hannah sighed and sat up slowly, kissing one of his mandibles again, "Yeah, you're right." She untangled herself from him and stood. She leaned against the copilots chair and experimentally rotated her ankle. It felt much better than it had before. Smiling to herself, she took her seat and watched as Yeyinde set to work at the controls. "You should teach me, so I can help you." 

Looking at her when she suggested teaching her, he nodded. "That would be a good idea, but first you would need to learn our language. At least the written form for now." He pulled out a portable computer pad, and accessed a childs learning program from it. "Here, take this. It is our alphabet, and simple words, with a speech program." Pressing a few more buttons, he linked it through the ships translator. "There, it is in human." 

"English. I speak english. There are a lot of different languages on Earth," she said absently, looking at the device in her hands. "Mind if I go lay down and study?" She asked, looking up at him.

He shrugged, "if that makes it easier, go ahead." He watched as she stood and went to her bed, tossing the pad onto it, and trying to pull herself up onto the bed. She was still physically drained from her recovery, and just couldn't do it. He shook his head, and chuckled. Walking over, he picked her up, and set her on the bed, just like he had done the first night she'd stayed with him. Staying there for a moment, he looked deeply into her blue-green eyes. He leaned forward and gently touched her face with his mandibles, trailing them over her lips and cheeks. When her eyes closed happily, he purred. Reluctantly, he straightened and stroked her face. "Perhaps I will fashion you a stepladder." 

Hannah shook her head, "and let me miss on even the most common day attentions. No way." She reached over to take his hand, feeling how much larger it was compared to hers. "Thank you, Yeyinde." As he turned to walk away, she added, "I love you."

He turned back and looked at her, his eyes shining, "I love you as well, Hannah." 

**Until next time Kiddies!**


	11. Learning to Speak

Disclaimer: I down own shit...damnit.

Hannah: You own us!   
Kec'than: damn...she killed me...  
Yeyinde: No, I did.   
Ti'ka'il: Sorry, technically Kittyn did kill him...being the godlike author that controls our lives.  
KittynJ: Of course! I am Kami, just like Light from Death Note! I wrote his name and his death...and he died! mwhahahahah!  
All others: sigh she's off her meds!

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Hannah lay for a few hours, trying to learn their alphabet, and felt that she was getting no where. Even with the audio options, she still couldn't get it figured out. Finally just dropping her head on the padding that served as a pillow she let out a loud sigh. "Yeyinde! There's no way I'm going to learn this!" With a growl, she rolled onto her back and closed her eyes.

Yeyinde chuckled a growl and walked over to her, standing over her he took the computer pad from her. "It is hard to learn a new language at an older age. Far easier as a pup." He looked over at the pad, "Perhaps we ought to get you to speak the language, then it would be easier to read it maybe?" He looked over the pad, "Let me work out a program." He walked to the controls and put the pad back into it's dock. Opening up a screen, he began to type away at the keys in front of him.

Closing her eyes she rolled onto her side and curled up. _Wow, I feel so stupid right now._ She growled in annoyance, and paused, realizing she was picking it up from Yeyinde. Letting out a sudden and loud laugh she nibbled on her thumbnail, trying to stifle her laughter.

"What?" Yeyinde turned the chair to look at her. He clicked curiously, and stood up, walking to her. "Why are you laughing? Are you laughing at me?" His voice sounded mischevious. Leaning over he looked closely into her face. "You wouldn't laugh at me would you?"

At his mock threat Hannah started to giggle louder. "No no, I was just thinking how I was starting to growl a little like you do. You're rubbing off on me." She sat up and slid her arms around his neck, "Not that I mind, of course." She grinned and kissed his cheek. "So what ya working on?" Letting him go, she hopped down from her bed.

Yeyinde took her hand and pulled her to the cockpit, sitting in his seat and pulling her onto his lap, he pulled up the screen again. "A translation program. It should run on the computer pad, through the same program." He pulled her against him, and punched a few more commands into the computers. Once it was done, he pulled the pad out and handed it to her.

Taking it she switched it on and ran the program. Simple words came up, written in english, but the audio was yaut'ja. "This is perfect!" She exlaimed, turning and kissing Yeyinde's cheek again, and standing she began to wander around the ship, repeating words as they were said to her.

Watching her, he smiled, "I am glad it works so well for you." He shook his head slightly and turned back to the controls, setting in the destination coordinates to Havvati. His mind wandered to all of Ti'ka'il's reactions to Hannah. _Would she like her? Would she hate her? Could she tolerate her? What about Ik'yed'a? what will he think of her? What will she think of him?_ These thoughts ran through his mind. _Stop, Yeyinde, just stop. Let fate take the controls._ He sighed and shook his head to clear it. He listened as Hannah walked around the ship behind him. It was definately going to be an interesting, and completely unique time.

Hannah practiced for a while, feeling pleased with herself. She was doing well, so she thought. "Yeyinde?" She asked absently.

"Yes?" He turned the chair to look at her. "What is it, Hannah?" 

Blinking rapidly, remember that she'd called for his attention she hastily remembered the question she had in mind. "How come these sound so different from when you say them? I mean...I recognize some of these words, but they arn't exactly how you said them when you were saying stuff, not when you were explaining them to me. There are the other sounds you use. The voice on the tablet doesn't have them." She had sat in her chair and faced him. 

"What you're speaking of is what we use for inflection, along with the volume and tone, the other sounds you hear are just more...mmmm...I don't want to say complex, and insult you, but...it's just..." He tried to find a way to say that the human language that she spoke was rudamentary compared to yaut'ja.

"No no, you're right, it's probably a lot more complex." She laughed, "I'm an ex-gamer. I already know humans suck!" She giggled, and hit the next button on the pad, and listened to the next word.

"Ex-gamer?" He repeated the word in English, unsure as to what it meant in Yaut'ja. "What is an ex-gamer?"   
Looking up at her dear confused yaut'ja lover, she smiled. "I used to play video games. PC games usually..." She tucked her feet up under her, "Uhm...they're entertainment really. Just stuff for fun. I did a lot of role playing ones, where you imagine yourself as someone else and act like they would, to create a story." Scratching the back of her head for a moment she paused to think, "in most of them there were a lot of different races. If humans were one of the races that a person could play as, they usually were the weakest, or suckiest. But that's just an opinion I suppose. Some people still liked to play as human. Not me." She smiled at him, "Sounds crazy eh?"

Giving her a short nod, Yeyinde agreed. "Your race is strange," He told her with a chuckle. "We will be leaving soon, so you should strap in." 

Pulling the straps across her she looked at him, "I thought we were leaving tomorrow." She clicked the latches together and gave them a little tug to make sure they were fastened. 

"We were. I changed my mind. I want to get to Havvati today. Though it will be late today," He told her, keeping his eyes on the controls. _She is right, once she learns to pilot, things will be a lot easier. This ship was not meant for one person at the controls!_ He continued to pilot alone, feeling strangely happy that she was actually trying to learn yaut'ja. _Customs will be harder than language_ He realized suddenly. Looking at Hannah he sighed _A lot harder._ As much as he loved her, she was stubborn, which, while it was respectable, was also going to be a problem.

Hannah went through a few more words, "teach me to understand inflection a bit at least?" She asked, looking up at him. "I can at least be able to recognize it."

Yeyinde chuckled, "You can understand what I am feeling, when I speak to you, correct?" He asked her, peering at her as he punch in the lauch commands. When she gave him a nod, he told her, "Then you can understand inflection already. You will be staying close to me most of the time, so you will not have to worry about much. For now, I do not want you to go anywhere without me or Ti'ka'il. She will protect you as well." He finished the commands and the ship shuddered and rose into the air, hovering before the take-off engines kicked on and drove the ship forward, rising towards the heavens. 

"Well," Hannah gritted against the extra gravity pressing her against the chair, "I guess you're right." She closed her eyes as the ship rocked violently. "What's wrong?" Fear rose up in her.

"The automatic stablizers are not working. I will have to pilot manually." His voice showed his annoyance. He hadn't had to pilot manually for years. _Paya, may I remember how!_ He pressed a button and two flat disks with buttons around the front edge rose up out of the chair, raising to where his hands were. He used them, placing his palm on the flat top, his fingers on the buttons, and used the disk by tilting his hand, to pilot. The ship still shook, but not nearly as bad as it had been. He was completely focused on his piloting.

Opening her eye a bit, Hannah peeked over at Yeyinde, watching him. She bit her lip as the craft still shook and quivered beneath them. Closing her eyes again she took a deep breath, trying to calm down. Once the ship had stopped shaking and was flying smoothily, she opened her eyes to see the black void of space outside the viewports. Sighing she turned to look at Yeyinde, "Dunno if my heart can handle any more takeoffs like that." She laughed nervously and looked at the pad in her hand, unclipping her harness. "How long until we get there?" She askes, leaning forward, her hair cascading around her like a curtain. For a moment everything that had happened to her, rushed through her mind. From the fire and on. Tears lept to her eyes, stinging and burning. She pulled a deep breath throuh her teeth silently and scrunched her eyes shut. Letting the breath out, the tears faded. She threw a smile on her face and looked up at Yeyinde, waiting for his answer.

Feeling that something was wrong, he didn't answer right away. When Hannah smiled at him, Yeyinde answered, "It's only a few of your hours away." He set in the coordinates for Havvati, then turned to face her. "Hannah, are you...upset with...anything?" He asked her.

Blinking at him a couple times while thinking, _How could he tell? Do I look like I've been cry? I didn't cry...how?_ She wrote it off to his overall superiority. _May I never think that again..._ "No, of course not Yeyinde. I'm fine, I promise," she assured him, leaning over and placing her hand on his arm.

Knowing she was hiding something, but not wanting to press the matter just yet. Taking her hand, he pulled her towards him and held her close to him. "Tell me, are you happy to be out here. Would you rather go home?" He asked her quietly.

Hannah clutched at the netting on his chest, feeling the heat radiating from it. "No, Yeyinde. I don't want to go back, I don't have a home. This is my home now. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. I love being here with you, and I love you." She pressed her head against his chest, inhaling his scent. "I am happy when I am with you." Just being this close to him, having him hold her near him. Hannah sighed contentedly. It felt more right than anything she could ever have imagined.

Hearing her say those words, Yeyinde calmed and purred to her, gently rubbing her back. "I am glad, for I want you here as well," He held her close, and they stayed there for a long time, content to be near each other.

A light blinked on the comm and Yeyinde sighed, "Ti'ka'il is hailing us." He let Hannah stand. She stood up beside him, and realized he was the same height as her, when he was sitting. He flipped the comm on and Ti'ka'il's face appeared on the screen. "Hello, sister," He greeted her.

"Hello brother," She returned. Seeing Hannah she clicked excitedly, "Oh! Hannah, I am glad to see you up and about. You are looking far better than when I last saw you," she trilled.

Hannah blushed a bit, "Ah, yes, Thank you very much for coming to help me." She smiled at Ti'ka'il and looked down at Yeyinde. He patted her hand. She smiled pleasently, as the two yaut'ja spoke briefly about on planet coordinates and arrival times. Yeyinde bragged about Hannah learning to read and speak a bit of yaut'ja.

"Perhaps she will be more or less fluent by the time you introduce her to the clan?" Ti'ka'il asked optimistically.

"I should hope she'll be able to follow conversation at the least, and preferably not offend anyone," He chuckled and looped his arm around Hannah's waist, pulling her onto his lap. She yelped quietly, but smiled at him and playfully huffed indignantly.

Ti'ka'il watched delightedly to see her previously moody brother so happy. He had always been her favorite, and she was glad that he had found his love. Her mind flicked back to when she had found hers.

Briefly leaning down to touch his mandibles to Hannah's head, Yeyinde let her snuggle close to him. **"I will want your opinion as to when she will be ready to confront the clan."** He told Ti'ka'il in yaut'ja.

Figuring they were having a personal conversation, Hannah leaned against Yeyinde, still tired from her recovery. She closed her eyes and yawned, relaxing and letting the siblings have their private conversation. She wondered if Lex could ever imagine anything like this when she met the yaut'ja's in the pyramid. Did she ever, afterwards, think anything like this could happen? And what about Jaslene, her roommate? She had seemed rather wise about it all. She'd have to ask them sometime, afterall, Yeyinde said they could return to earth from time to time.

**"Of course I will give my opinion. Just try to stop me!"** Ti'ka'il laughed. She watched Hannah resting. "Do not be surprised," She added, through the translator, "if she is weak for the next few days. She will be tired, because she is recovering."

Yeyinde agreed quietly. "I will not let her overexert herself."

Hannah sighed softly as his voice rumbled deeply in his chest. It comforted her, every reminder that he was this close, that he was real, that it wasn't all just a dream. Though it was a very good dream if it was. 

"We will be there soon, I will talk more with you then. Be strong, Ti'ka'il." Yeyinde said, and they both switched their comms off. Turning his attention to the female in his lap. She looked to be asleep, but he could tell she wasn't. "Hannah," he urged her quietly.

She made a softly mewling noise and looked up at him, "Yeyinde?"

He shook his head and leaned down, running his mandibles across the top of her head, the side of her face, and onto her shoulder. She leaned against his arm that was holding her and sighed. He pulled her against him, and let her rest again, as they flew undisturbed.

Back on the planet they had just left, a string of yaut'ja curses trailed through the air, and bright green blood marked a path to a cloaked ship. "Geeta! Get over here!" Came the rough and shaky voice. A Tharian female rushed over, "Master...you are wounded!" Came her high airy voice. "Get my med-kit, and a transfusion pack." As she rushed away, he sat on a container and growled, lifting his blood covered hand to his face, looking it over, "I will kill you, oh brother of mine. For this, you die." 

**Until next time kiddies!**


	12. Dtou'di'sain'ja

DISCLAIMER: I own Yeyinde, Hannah, Kec'than, Ti'ka'il, the Ki-ki, and the Tharian slave-girl, That's it! Everything else belongs to respective owners.

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Hannah woke suddenly, blinking. She was curled up on Yeyinde's lap, cradled by his arm. She looked up at him and smiled. She hadn't realized that she had fallen asleep against him. She slowly slid off of his lap, turning around to kiss his lower mandible.

Yeyinde looked at her as she kissed his mandible, the other one reaching forward to gently stroke her cheek. Looking down at the controls in front of him he told her, "We will arrive in twenty of your minutes." He set in the landing commands, then looked at her. "You seem nervous," he told her, picking up on her scent, which carried a slightly thicker sweat smell.

Laughing slightly, she nodded, "A bit, I suppose." She tried to calm herself with a deep breath. "What if I do something wrong? What if I say something wrong?" She asked, her eyes closed, still attempting to calm herself. Feeling his hand on her back, she took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Do not worry, Little Warrior, I will be by your side always," was his quiet promise. Giving Hannah a slight nudge to her chair, he watched as she sat and strapped herself in. He was quiet proud of her, she's come so far, and done so much to be by his side. He had gained much respect for her since the day he had first met her. His mind wandered back to that day. She had seemed so small, so insignificant to him. She had been nothing in his eyes, just part of a cattle race, used to breed the ultimate prey, or to train young bloods. So tiny, so weak. He'd almost paid her no heed. But something had caught his eye, something had stopped him. Her eyes, the look in her eyes, it stop him in his tracks. It had made him want to know more, to know her. He wanted to know what put that look in her eyes. Suddenly finding himself lost in memories, he blinked rapidly for a second and looked down at the controls. Everything was set properly still. He started to enter the landing routine into the ships autopiloting system. Once he was done, he leaned back, keeping his left hand near the emergency stabilizers, just in case.

After strapping herself into her seat, Hannah watched the planet in front of them as it grew larger and larger. She braced herself for entry with a deep breath, clinging to the straps that went over her shoulders. The ride was rough, but not as bad as usual. Once the ship had settled onto the ground and shifted slightly until becoming steady, Hannah hit the release on her straps and stood up. She darted to the hatch, putting on her two daggers. She waited patiently until Yeyinde joined her.

"In a rush, Hannah?" He asked, turning his chair around to face her. He chuckled and stood up. "A moment ago you were nervous about this, now it seems that you can't wait." He got his own armor on, and checked that his wrist blades worked properly as always, then he joined her.

Watching him put on what armor he hadn't already had on, she shrugged, "guess I want to get to it, before I get too scared to." She almost said chicken out, but figured he wouldn't understand the phrase. For a brief second her mind contemplated different types of situations of the sort she might face in the future. Pulling her attention back to Yeyinde, she watched him punch in the code to open the hatch. She'd need to remember that. Closing her eyes she repeated it in her mind, setting it to memory. Then she followed Yeyinde out, looking around the new planet. It looked tropical, and the weather was much warmer than the previous planet. She grinned and momentarily wanted to name them the same way that planets were named in Stargate, but she figured no one else would appreciate that. Seeing Yeyinde walking off, she trotted after him.

Noticing Hannah following him, Yeyinde laughed to himself. At least she was behaving well. It would be important once they returned to their home. While it would be unlikely that they would ever return to the Homeworld, they would probably return to one of the clan's Jag'd'ja Atoll's. The larger station-like ships that belonged to the entire clan. It couldn't be much longer, the ship needed to be refueled and repaired soon. He'd speak to Ti'ka'il about that.

Hannah caught up to Yeyinde and slid her hand into his. She hardly even noticed anymore how much his hands dwarfed her own. Turning her head away from the trail in front of them, she gawked at the scenery. She could see small things moving up in the branches, and a soft "Ki ki ki" sounds coming from that direction. "Love, what are those?" She asked, pointing up towards the creatures.

Yeyinde felt something swell in his chest as she called him 'love', though he didn't mention it. Looking in the direction. "Those? I do not think they even have a name in our language. I suppose we have hardly taken time to notice them." He gave her a shrug but stopped to let her look at them further. "I could catch one for you, if you'd like to look at it closer?" He asked her, turning and bending slightly to look at her face.

Watching him she asked him cautiously, "Alive?" When he nodded she smiled, "Oh! Could you?" Her hands clasped before her, and her face lit up.

Bending to touch her face against his cheek, Yeyinde told her softly, "I would do anything for you, Hannah." He held her close for a moment, then looked up at the large tree's above them. Seeing a branch that he figured could hold his weight, he leapt for it. Catching it, he swung his massive body up onto it and lay still for a moment. The creatures had scattered at his sudden intrusion into their world. He made a soft clicking noise much like the ones they had been making earlier. Slowling a purpled colored one, stuck its short nose out from behind one of the leaves that was as large as Hannah's head. It's head, legs, and tail were covered in a soft short hair, while it's body, the very tip of it's tail, small circlets around its ankles, and the very top of it's head were covered in longer puffy hair. It had short ears with long flowing fur coming from the very tips. The creatures eyes were pure black. A dainty purple paw stepped out from behind the leaf. This was a very young one, Yeyinde noticed. Slowly a body emerged, and the hind quarters. Yeyinde's right arm tensed, then suddenly flew out and snatched the creature up. It gave a wail then struggled a bit. Leaping down Yeyinde held it out so Hannah could see it.

The creature's little claws were working futilely at Yeyinde's hand, but Hannah bit back a squeal of delight. It was the cutest thing she'd ever seen. After a bit the creatur calmed down and sat, flicking it's tail in aggitation. Hannah held her hand out in front of it, and let it sniff her finger. Though she heard Yeyinde growl, disliking her action, she ignored it. The little purple thing gave a few short "ki's" and licked her finger. "Let me hold it, I think it likes me." She said, reaching both hands out. Yeyinde reluctantly let her take it from him.

He watched in surprise as the little thing curled up in her arms and looked up at her, making a soft trilling purr. He looked at Hannah's face, and saw her quite happy with the creature, so he was happy as well. "I believe that they eat insects that they catch." He told her. "If you think you can teach it not to deficate all over in my ship, why don't you keep it?" Many of the human's he had seen had pets, and they often seemed happy when they had their pets with them. Figuring that Hannah would like pets as well, he thought that the little critter would be a good pet for her, they were usually harmless. The bright smile on Hannah's face confirmed that she liked the idea as well.

"Oh! Yeyinde! Really? I can keep it?" Her bright eyes shone up at him with excitement. When he nodded to her, she couldn't help but squeal quietly. She hugged the little fuzzy creature to her. "Thank you!" She motioned Yeyinde to her with her free hand, and kissed his cheek when he bent to her.

Chuckling, Yeyinde looked down at the creature. It was sniffing intently at Hannah's hair. "As long as it doesn't make a mess in the ship," He reminded her before turning away and continuing to walk down a barely visible trail.

Hannah followed, humming and stroking her new pet. It trilled happily. The little thing fit perfectly in the crook of her arm, and seemed quite happy to be there. After a couple of minutes of walking, Hannah watched as it fell into a peaceful sleep. She wondered why it had taken to her so suddenly. Did she smell good? Could it sense her gender, and think she was her mother? This one was smaller than the ones she'd seen up in the trees at first, so it was probably younger than them. She continued to pet it softly. It's fur was extremely soft, like a rabbits, with slightly courser hairs where it's hair was longer. Looking at it, she started to wonder about it's gender.

"Ti'ka'il is also particularly fond of animals. She should know a bit more about them than I do. She comes here often as well to teach the pups to hunt in the wild once they're old enough." Yeyinde told her as they walked.

Hannah nodded, "I'll have to ask her about them." The creature in her arm snored softly, causing Hannah to giggle. It was so cute and sweet, she was instantly in love with the little thing. "If it's going to be a pet, it needs a name." She said, looking down at it, following Yeyinde out of the corner of her eye.

"Well, what do you want to call it? Mi'l'dja?" He asked, turning to look over his shoulder at her with an amused look in his eyes.

Hannah scrunched up her nose, "Lemme guess, that's a stereotypical name for a pet? Like naming a dog Fido or Spot?" She asked him with a grin.

"Well, it is that, though I wouldn't know anything about names for a ...dog." Yeyinde informed her with a yaut'ja smile.

Hannah laughed softly and shook her head, "No no, he or she needs a name that isn't so ordinary. It's just too... I dont know, interesting I suppose?" She looked down at the purple thing laying on her arm. "Hmmm I'm thinking Mirad?...or no...Maev?...hm...no not quite right..." She pondered for a bit longer. "Kiri? Ki...that's the sound they make...Ki-ki?" She looked up at Yeyinde, "Yeah! Ki-ki! I like it. What do you think?"

Glancing back at her and the little thing he nodded, "Sounds appropriate." He pointed up ahead, "Ti'ka'il's ship is right up here." The ship was slowly becoming visible through the flora.

Hannah paused and took a deep breath, nibbling on her bottom lip for a moment, she was feeling nervous again. She relaxed when Yeyinde placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Walk beside me, and relax," He instructed her. Leading her forward with his hand still on her shoulder, he brought them into the clearing.

Ti'ka'il was standing by her small ship, holding an infant pup, and watching two older pups wrestling on the ground. The infant she held was hers, and the oldest pup, Vor'nde was Yeyinde's. The other was hers as well. She was quite proud to see her pup overpowering his older cousin. At the sound of other's approaching she turned to look, seeing Yeyinde leading Hannah forward. "Yeyinde! Hannah!" She hailed them raising her hand to them.

Yeyinde raised his as well, and lead Hannah over to her. He noticed one of his pups scuffling with Ti'ka'il's. He hoped Hannah was ready to meet some of his offspring. She seemed to be adjusting well to her new life. "Ti'ka'il, I hope that the gods have seen well to you and yours." He came forward and embraced his sister with one arm, from her side, since she held the infant pup.

"Papa!" The oldest pup shouted, followed by the younger shouting "Uncle!" They both rushed over. Yeyinde knelt down onto one knee and embraced them both.

"Vor'nde, my son, have you been minding your aunt?" He asked, patting the pups head.

The pup nodded, "yes sir!" Though is cousin shook his head behind the older pups back.

Hannah stood and faced Ti'ka'il, "I would like to thank you, now that we get to meet face to face. If not for you, I might not have been around anymore." bowing her upper body respectfully towards Ti'ka'il. She was glad to see a smile on the extremely tall female's face. "Also, I'd like to ask, do you know anything about this?" She motioned to Ki-ki in her arms. "I named it Ki-ki, Yeyinde is letting me keep it," was her explaination.

"Well, they don't actually have a name for the species, but that's a little male. It will get about as tall as your knees, and it eats fruit and bugs, hm...and they bond to others very strongly. It seems to have bonded to you already." She smiled and gave a slight shrug, "That's all I know." Turning to face the others, "Vor'nde come here. I want you to meet someone. Your father has been rude to not introduce her!" She added ruefully, "may you never pick up his horrible social skills." She added a wink to Hannah, which earned her a slight giggle.

The pup ran over, "Ooh! Is this her? Is this papa's new female?" He asked, looking up at Hannah. The pup reached up to her stomach, so he still had to look up at her. "Hello, I'm Vor'nde! And I'm going to be the greatest hunter in the 'verse!"

Hannah laughed softly, "Hello Vor'nde. I think that's quite possible." She smiled, "And yes, I am your father's new female." She said, going along with his wording. "My name is Hannah."

Yeyinde walked up behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders. He was glad to see that this part of his family was accepting her. It was a relief to him, and he hoped that it would continue this way as she met more of his family, though he didn't have much faith in that hope. "It is late, how about we find something to eat?" He asked, hearing one of the pups stomachs suddenly growl.

Hannah laughed softly, "That sounds like a wonderful idea, I'm hungry too!" She smiled at Ti'ka'il's pup, since it was his stomach that had objected to its state of emptiness.

Yeyinde gave Hannah's shoulders a sqeeze, "lets head back to our ship, since that's where your food is, Little Warrior."

Ti'ka'il's eyes sparkled, **Dtou'di'sain'ja?** She said the nickname in yaut'ja, **Very appropriate.**

Giving her a smile, Yeyinde chuckled, "Would you like to join us after you get the pups to sleep?" He asked. She accepted his offer and the pups bade Yeyinde and Hannah goodnight. After that, Yeyinde lead Hannah back to their ship. Once they were nearing it, Yeyinde still walking with his hand on her shoulder in the twilight, he spoke to her. "You know, you are more than my female. You are my lover," He paused for a moment. "I would very much like to be able to say, that you are my mate as well. If you will have me."

Hannah looked up at him in surprise, "Mate? Like...?" She wondered if he meant lifemate.

"Yes, my lifemate," He told her, confirming her thoughts. He stopped walking as the reached the hatch of his ship. "I would like to bind myself to you, and only you." His fingers trailed down her cheek and neck, resting again on her shoulder. "If you would take me, of course."

Hannah looked up at him, still a bit shocked by it. "Yeyinde...I-"

**Until next time kiddies!**


	13. You are everything

DISCLAIMER: I own Yeyinde, Hannah, Kec'than, Ti'ka'il, the Ki-ki, and the Tharian slave-girl, That's it! Everything else belongs to respective owners.

KittyJenn: I AM ADDICTED TO World of Warcraft. FORGIVE ME!

Hannah: SHE HAS TO PAY FOR WoW.

Yeyinde: Holds cue card up, and whispers Hannah what does this say? points at card

Hannah: leans in and whispers to him

Yeyinde: THIS IS FREE. WRITING IS HARDER.

KittynJenn: applauds her actors

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Dinner had gone nicely when Ti'ka'il had arrived after putting the pups to bed. Yeyinde had thawed some of the fish, and Ti'ka'il had prepared it and cooked it perfectly. It was a quiet meal, only Ti'ka'il did much talking. She spoke to Yeyinde mostly about life back home on the clan's Jag'd'ja Atoll. "Apparently, Scar and Celtic brought home human mates," She said looking down at her plate, and waiting for a reaction from the two. Hannah looked nervous, and Yeyinde looked both surprised and relieved. "One named Jaslene and one named Lex."

Hannah's head whipped up, "I know them!" She looked at Yeyinde, "Remember that picture I showed you on the day we met? That's Lex! Jaslene is her friend!" She turned to Ti'ka'il, "Have you heard much about them? How are they?" Her eyes were wide, as she hoped for information on the only two human friends that she still had. Her life on earth hadn't been very social for the last few years, so she treasured what friendships she did have.

Ti'ka'il shook her head, "I havn't heard too much. I've been rather busy with the pups, they're quite the handful sometimes." She chuckled quietly. "But I think that since they are bringing their human mates back, I believe that it would be acceptable to return with Hannah." Her gaze had settled on Yeyinde, watching his face darken slightly.

"We will see," he said abruptly, and stuck another peice of fish into his mouth. The entire dinner he kept looking over at Hannah, though she didn't look back at him.

Ti'ka'il started to feel that something was wrong. "Yeyinde, I think I may have left the hatch to my ship unlocked, could you run over and see if it is or not? I'm worried." She lied, hoping to get him out of the room. There was a pause, but he left after giving his sister a nod, and Hannah one more long look. Once he was out the hatch, Ti'ka'il turned to face Hannah. "What is wrong between you two? I can feel something is not right."

Hannah sighed and set down the peice of succulent fish she had been about to take a bite from. "Well... I think I'm just being an idiot, but..." She stopped and stared at her plate, only starting to talk again when Ti'ka'il cleared her throat, "Yeyinde asked me to be his lifemate," Hannah said straight out. She looked up at Ti'ka'il, not sure how to explain further.

"You got frightened didn't you? Even though you love him, it's a big step." Ti'ka'il said with a relaxed smile. "That's exactly how I felt when Det'kin'da asked the same of me. At first, I said no, because he was of a much higher ranking than I was. But he was persistant, and eventually I gave in. It was quite honestly the smartest thing I've ever done." She reached out and put her hand on the little human's shoulder. "Yeyinde loves you, and I can tell that you love him as well. Do not be afraid, let love do what it will." She gave Hannah a smile as Yeyinde walked through the door.

"Dear sister of mine, I think you are losing your mind, the hatch was locked firmly." He was about to add more, but suddenly Hannah had launched herself at him and embraced him. "Hannah? What's wrong? Are you alright?" He caught her and held onto her, confused about her sudden actions.

"Oh Yeyinde!" She nuzzled her face against his chest. "I'm fine, I really am," She looked up at his face, staring into his eyes. "And I wanted to tell you, I'm saying 'yes'." Tears welled up in her eyes and she smiled at him, laughing as he suddenly lifted her up and spun around, holding her close to him.

"You mean it? You really mean that you accept me?" He asked, still slightly in shock. She was accepting him! Him! Everything seemed to stop around him, everything but the wonderful woman in his arms.

"Yes, love, I really mean it." She told him, laying kisses on his face anywhere she could, as he still spun them around, her hair catching on the spike stubs on his forhead, creating a half curtain around their faces. Some of his dreadlocks lay over her shoulder, making a curtain on the other side. They created their own little world around them, everything else fading away from them.

A voice suddenly entered their world, "Yeyinde! You brute, stop it before you make her sick!" Ti'ka'il laughed, watching the spinning couple. The sheepish look on her brother's face as he put Hannah down caused her to laugh harder, holding her stomach. "Oh, you two are going to be so much fun!" Her roaring laughter subsided into small growls of giggles. Then suddenly her laughter stopped, "Oh, Yeyinde, I forgot to tell you. Kec'than lived. He has been at the clan ship since your fight. He claims you attacked him unprovoked, though the Elders do not believe him. He has not mentioned Hannah to them. Mostly because of his slave, I do not think he will, since he could be called out on having one of his own." Her gaze flickered over to Hannah briefly. _I wonder if this one knows what a messed up family she's getting involved in... And a bad luck mate too!_

Yeyinde growled and faced Ti'ka'il, his only reaction was to nod, and look down at Hannah again. He lifted her into his arms and sat down, keeping her on his lap. He suddenly had the overwhelming need to make sure she was safe, and that she was indeed with him.

"But, on a happier note," Ti'ka'il said, "Dahdtoudi is with child." Her eyes sparkled as she watched her brothers face light up. "You, my dearest brother, are going to have a grandchild, finally."

"Who is it by?" He asked, excited to hear about his only daughter. While male children were prefered, Yeyinde most definately loved his daughter the most, unfair as it was. He had pampered her often throughout her life with gifts and other little trinkets as a child, and still often sent her items of value when he could.

Ti'ka'il shrugged, "I havn't heard. They mated after a very successful hunt. I havn't heard too much more, but it is healthy." She stood up, "I need to return to my ship, I don't like to leave the pups this long, it makes me nervous." She bowed slightly from the waist, and then left.

Hannah was nibbling on a bit of fish after bidding Ti'ka'il goodnight. She watched her leave silently, her eyebrows furrowed. "Yeyinde?" She finally spoke after a few minutes of the silence. She set down the fish, and turned to look at him. He was leaned back in his chair and looking at the overhead plating, so she didn't think that he was paying attention. "Yeyinde?" She asked again, a little louder.

Blinking his eyes back into focus, Yeyinde looked down at Hannah. "Yes?" He noticed she looked upset about something and stood up, crossing to her side of the table in a moment. He knelt beside her, looking into her face. "What is on your mind, Little Warrior?" Brushing hair from her face, he could see that her eyes looked troubled. In the next instant he had pulled her into his arms, holding her against his chest. "Hannah, my love, you have nothing to be worried about, I promise you. I will always be here, right here, next to you." He murmered in her ear. "I will never leave you, Hannah. No matter what happens. No matter what is said. I love you, Hannah." He ran his mandibles from the top of her head down to her chin, purring softly to her. Feeling her relax in his arms, he sighed silently in relief. It distressed him when she was upset.

"I just," She took a deep breath and nuzzled into Yeyinde's arms. "I worry. I worry that because of me, you might lose some of the comforts of your lifestyle, that maybe... because of me, people will not respect you as they do now. You and your family." She told him softly, dreading that he would agree with her. She clutched to the netting on his chest, taking in a deep breath of his scent. She could recognize it now, from any scent in the world. It meant safety to her, safety and security, a place where she was loved and wanted. Where nothing that could get her when she was near him, nothing bad could happen. She liked how it felt to be near him, to be held by him. It was nothing she'd ever felt before. She couldn't lose this. She wouldn't

Yeyinde shook his head, "Oh, my Little Warrior, do not worry about it." He chuckled softly, "That is all nonsense, there is nothing that will happen. Mating outside of the race is not unheard of." He stroked the back of her head. Her hair felt soft against his palm, and he watched how it slid so easily around his talon-like nails when they lifted strands up over them. The skin on her arm where he held her close to him was warm and soft, making him want to hold her forever. She was the soft and gentle to his hard and fierce. His counter balance. He would not let anything or anyone take her or keep her from him. They would be together. They were meant to be. "Hannah, I promise you, that we will live a happy life together." He lifted her chin so that she looked him in the eye, "I promise you this. You do trust my word, do you not?"

Hannah looked up into his eyes, seeing sincerity and honest conviction in their yellow hues. "I believe you Yeyinde. I trust you, completely." She stroked his cheek, and smiled. "I just... worry I suppose." Chuckling softly she shrugged, "I just don't want to be a bother to you." Looking back into his eyes she smiled, "because I love you, and I want you to be happy."

His eyes lit up and danced with joy, "Hannah, as long as you are with me, I am happy." He leaned down and embraced her fully, wrapping himself around her as well as he could, breathing in her scent, her soft feel, and the way she nuzzled against his shoulder. He never wanted to forget how this felt. How she felt near him. Hearing her trying to muffle a yawn, he purred and lifted her up, and carried her to her bed, using one arm to pull it down he set Hannah up on it. Looking up into her eyes he touched her face softly, "Sleep now, you're exhausted, it's been a long day for you, and you are not yet fully recovered from your injury." He pushed her softly, urging her to lay down.

With a wide yawn, she nodded, "You're right." Leaning towards him she kissed his upper right mandible, then curled her arm under her head and yawned again. "Goodnight Yeyinde." She said as he made his way back to clean up and shut the lighting off for the night. "Thank you," she added.

Yeyinde paused and turned back to her, "For what?" He asked her slightly confused, not sure what he'd done to earn a thank you from her this time. He couldn't remember if he'd done anythig special, or gone out of his way to do something.

Hannah's eyes stirred open for a moment, and her gaze settle unsteadily on him, "for everything." She barely finished the words before falling into an exhausted sleep.

Walking back over to her, Yeyinde watched her for a moment, "Hannah, you **are** everything." He kissed her forehead tenderly, taking in a deep breath of her scent, and went back to setting things in order for the night, before climbing into his own bunk, and looking up at the overhead plating. _I will keep you safe, Hannah. I will make a life for us, one that we can both be happy in. I will love you, forever,_ he thought before closing his eyes and joining his soon to be mate in peaceful sleep.

Pictures of a soft blue sky with little puffy clouds, over a lush green field filled Hannah's sleep. She stood in the middle, wearing a pale yellow strapless dress, spinning happily, little blue flowers surrounding her. She laughed at herself and fell into the lush grass. Birds flew overhead, and chirped at her. Turning her head she could see Yeyinde walking towards her. She smiled and sat up as he knelt beside her, kissing her bare shoulders, stroking her arm, up to her neck and face. Rain washed down suddenly, and the scene changed. They were on a ship like Yeyinde's, but much larger, and the yaut'ja standing over her was Kec'than. She tried to run, but found her arms were a hundred times their weight. She tried to scream, but no sound came from her other than a hoarse whisper. Kec'than growled out a dark laugh and lunged for her. Hannah's eyes shot open, she sat still, breathing in short breaths. Looking around she saw Yeyinde sleeping peacefully on his bed. Taking a deep breath she reminded herself it was just a dream, and rolled onto her other side, closing her eyes and falling into a dreamless sleep. 


	14. Welcome to Hehl, have a nice stay

DISCLAIMER: I own Yeyinde, Hannah, Kec'than, Ti'ka'il, the Ki-ki, and the Tharian slave-girl, That's it! Everything else belongs to respective owners.

A/N: Uhm... so I totally suck for taking so long, and you all rock for sticking with me. I cannot apologize enough.

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Weeks had passed, Yeyinde had made some routine repairs to their ship, and the two had fallen into a more comfortable ease with each other. Ti'ka'il had returned to the homeworld with the pups. She claimed she had other motherly things to do, and had spent to long putting them off for later.

The majority of Hannah and Yeyinde's travels had gone uneventfully. They had stopped for supplies once at an inhabited world, and Hannah stayed on the ship. It went well, Yeyinde had brought back a couple of robes for Hannah and a body suit that she could wear under armor or any other clothing that would cool her skin. It was much like spandex, reminding Hannah of a catsuit or zentai. He suggested she only wear it when they get to the homeworld, so that she wasn't used to the cool it would bring her in space, even if the ship was warmer than she was used to, it was not as warm as the homeworld. Hannah got to try zero gravity inside the ship once, when the gravity simulators went offline. She amused herself bouncing off the walls and bulkheads and floating while Yeyinde commenced repairs in an EVA suit.

It wasn't long after that, nearing the end of three earth weeks by Hannah's count, that they came in contact with one of the larger motherships, and Yeyinde decided to dock with them. They didn't know it, but it would be their undoing.

"Hannah, strap in, we're coming up to dock." Yeyinde said, his large clawed hands flying over the controls at surprising speed, controlling his personal hunting vessel through the docking proceedure. "I'd rather keep you in health than regret you taking unecessary chances." He didn't look up from his piloting.

With a soft chuckle Hannah took her seat, "Yeah, yeah, better safe than sorry." She strapped in and looked out the large viewports at the mothership above them. "Whoa...that's huge." She gaped open mouthed at the large vessel. She was quiet throughout the rest of the docking, taking in as many details of the ship as she could see through the viewports. Weapons, exterior hatches, fuel cells, repair bays, etc. Though at this time she did not recognize everything she saw. She was busy watching the ship loom closer she hadn't heard Yeyinde saying her name repeatedly.

"Hannah? Hannah!" He paused until she turned her gaze to him then he gave her his equivalent of a smile. "Stay here until I get clearance," he almost added 'for a ooman.' Turning back to the control panel when he heard the _hiss-kerclunk_ that signified the stablizing arms attatched to their hull. A light went on the symbol meaning they were successfully docked and the process was completed. "Just wait, perhaps clean up some of your stuff. You've left things laying around." He reminded her gently and leaned down embracing her and nuzzling his face against her soft hair. "I will return shortly. Wait here. Do Not Leave." He looked into her eyes, getting a promist to stay where she was, then he turned and walked out.

Watching Yeyinde walk out Hannah turned her attention out the viewports once more, seeing only a plain and dark wall, she sighed and turned her attention to the interior. Gathering her things and placing them back in her storage compartment. She had just finished when she heard footsteps outside coming towards the hatch. Shutting the storage door she turned with a smile as the hatch opened, "Yeyinde, I-" But the tall creature that stepped in was not her Yeyinde, but a much taller and darker colored female that growled and reached out a long and large arm, snatching her up she dragged the small human, yelling and shouting, out of the vessel into the small crowd that waited outside. Beyond the reach of the translator Hannah could not understand what was said around her, but by their tones, it was not pleasant. "Let me go! Where's Yeyinde? YEYINDE! YEYINDE!" She screamed his name, unable to fight against the female that held her, nor the crowd that jeered at her. She scanned the crowd for familiar faces, but in the rush and jumble everyone there began to look the same. Tears welled in her eyes. "Yeyinde... where are you?" She whispered. Something cold touched her neck and everything went black.

Hannah groaned and turned her head, light breaking through the unconscious haze that she was coming out of. Blinking rapidly against it she lifted her hand to shade her eyes, and saw she was sitting on a cave floor and two bright suns, one blue one rust colored floated outside. There was a paper written note in horrible handwriting. _Little Warrior, forgive me. I could not stop them. I will find a way to help you. I will save you._ Hannah clutched the paper to her, tears in her eyes as reality smacked her in the face. She was stranded and alone. _Why? Why did he let this happen? Where was she? How would she survive?_ Standing she turned and looked around her. Piled in the corner were her things and a small packet of dried foodstuffs. There was a handprint in the ground near it, left intentionally. It was larger than Yeyinde's, so she presumed it was Ti'ka'ils. It looks like her dear one time sister-to-be had looked out for her. It brought a smile to Hannah's face, and she put on her weapons, adding little else to her person, and walked to the cave enterance. It would make a fine home base, the steep face of the hill gave her the impression that little else could reach it, so it was very unlikely that something else called the cave home. And inside there were little signs of other inhabitants. Stepping out of the cave she took a deep breath and went to explore her surroundings.

Yeyinde sat before a small council of elders. **You WILL stay, and you WILL obey the lead medic. It has been proved that certain human females put of a pheramone that affects our males, ** the tall female elder said. **Before their women were content to be... of use to our hunters. But now they have progressed and it seems they expect to be equals to us! A prey race expecting to be our equals. These pheramones have affected your mind. Until you are cleared of them, you will remain in the medic bay, and you will not be allowed to leave. Your sister was sent home. She will remain there until her mate comes for her. To think she allowed this. She is lucky she was not stripped of her titles and exiled along with that ooman trash!** The elders face glowed with anger. Her own son had brought back a human, to their homeworld and was allowed to keep it, along with his friend. She disapproved greatly of this, and would not let this warrior disgrace his family as well. **The decision was made. You will obey. **She turned and walked out, along with the rest of the council following behind her. Her cape swept along behind her hissing against the metal of her boots.

Yeyinde gave her a venomous glare as she left followed by her cowed council of males. He followed the guards, eight in total that took him to the med bay, and locked him up in a quarantine seclusion room, and left him there, with four guards on his door. He sat still, meditating. Days passed, and he alternated between meditation and going through fighting stances, a little practice as well. He ate and drank the rations he received. Days turned slowly and agonizingly to weeks. And weeks slipped into months. He was released, but the mothership had gone far from where Hannah had been left. He loaded supplies on his ship and left, once the doctor had cleared him. Hardly waiting for the latches to release he cursed the council woman and sped on his search for Hannah, pheramones be damned.

It was nearing a year by Hannah's estimate, that she had awoken stranded on the planet she dubbed Hehl. It was hot, and she'd donned the cooling suit Yeyinde had given her. She'd hunted creatures, named Buffs, that looked vaugly like buffalo with longer horns and long solid tails full of fat, avoided raptor dinosaur like creatures that hunted in pairs, and larger ones much the same that hunted alone. She had also discovered that this was the home planet of the insectoid creature that Yeyinde had found on the stranded ship. They were much like a beehive, and fed on blood rather than nectar. They were definately a tough critter to fight, but thankfully hunted alone, even the larger raptors, that she had given the name Rextors, a combination between raptor and T-rex, avoided the Blood-bees, as she called them. The Minrapts, the small raptor species, fled from the blood-bees. Their teeth and claws were no match tho the hides of the blood-bees.

There was another creature, herbivore, that looked like the brachiosaurus, but much smaller and had a much shorter neck, it ate from short trees and shrubs, they were dubbed Brushnecks for their diet and their flexable necks. It was one of these that Hannah had tamed and used as a mount. It was a brown-green dappled pattern, and had yellow eyes that seemed to comprehend little. She had cut a path up the mountain that it could walk well with guidance. The tip of it's tail had been apparently bitten off long ago, and so she'd dubbed the creature Stumpy. By now she had a bed, a cooking slab of indigenous rock that conducted heat well, weapons made of blood-bee sycthes and various tooth knives from carnivores. Life was lonely, but she survived. She always did. Her paper was long used up, various drawings of local fauna and flora, and of her Yeyinde, whom she still loved, though she wondered why he had left her still. _Was it all a lie?_ As the time had passed she began to have doubts about him. The walls depicted various scenes done with charcoal and stains from fruits and berries. She had meat from kills she'd made, though it took her a while to get used to the acrid flavor. She faintly remembered spices and things, using some berries and fruits while cooking to help mask the flavor some. It didn't do much, but it took the edge off of it.

She found medicinal use for many bits and parts of local flora. One tree had bark that smelled good, a spice that although it didn't taste like cinnamon, reminded Hannah greatly of it. It went well in dried beans that she used much like coffee, though it didn't have the same caffeine effect, it made her mornings feel more pleasant. A large cluster of diamond shaped fruit grew on a tree above her cave. The meat of the fruit was useless as far as she could tell, but the juice was a fine antibiotic. It carried a sharp odor and stung in cuts, but it warded off infections wonderfully. She had a good supply of that in a bladder-bag tied to her belt. It also worked as a slight clotting agent, so it came in very useful for injuries in the field. During her first month on the planet she'd gashed her leg to the bone, and the muscles hadn't healed properly, but the wound healed well enough without any sort of infection after she'd slathered on the thick liquid from the bright green fruit. Each individual fruit was about half the size of her fist. She referred to them as first-aid berries.

Even though she was alone she talked to herself, or an mental image of Yeyinde. Occasionally she spoke to her mount Stumpy, though it was obvious it didn't listen. Sometimes she would see a shadow that looked like one Yeyinde would cast, and for a split second she would believe he had returned for her. Though in the last two months this occured less and less, as she finally began to give up hope of ever seeing her otherworldy lover and protector again. Occasionally at night she would wake up, dreams of him still flitting in her mind, and tears would spill from her eyes. "He would not be proud of a cry-baby. Stop it Hannah!" She would coach herself. She found herself missing the little Ki-ki pet she had long ago, and wondered how it fared. By now it had probably died or something.

Outside of her little home Stumpy was tethered in a little stable like lean-to built to the side of the mountain. He munched happily on soft greens that Hannah provided him. His nose caught a scent and he bleated, pulling at his tether in an attempt to flee. Hannah appeared, armed and ready at the door. A minrapt stood in front of Stumpy, likely trying to scare the tied creature to its partner. Turning she saw the second half of the onslaught not far off on the other side of her home. She lunged quickly at the first creature before it caught sight of her, slicing first her left then her right blood-bee scyth weapon. The first missed, but the second hit, slashing across the minrapts eyes. It shrieked and fell backwards pawing towards it's face with too-short arms. It's partner bellowed and ran at a very fast speed towards Hannah. Stumpy thrashed his head and tail trying to get away from the fight, and in all luck that could exist, smacked the second minrapt in the side, causing it to stumble and miss it's attack on Hannah. It's powerful jaws filled with rows of razor sharp teeth that grew in like a sharks, snapped shut harmlessly two feet from her. She reacted and spun, her scyth bearing down on the minrapts shoulder, deeply slicing it open. Dark red blood splattered out, hitting her and Stumpy in bursts of arterial spray. Pulling up her other scyth she bashed the creature under the skull knocking it backwards and sending it careening over the edge of the pathway. It's shrill cry ended abruptly when it hit the bottom of the long drop, missing the switchback trail completely. Peering down at it, Hannah saw it lay still as blood pooled around it. "Damnit!" She cursed and turned ot the first creature, ending it's life with a quick slash to the throat she shoved it off the drop, watching it land with a dull thud and a sharp crack as bones broke. "The bloodies'll find them too quick," she grumbled to no one in particular. Grabbing Stumpies reins she lead him into the cave she called home. "Guess you're in here until their all scavanged away. Don't wanna lose you," She told the creature, who simply stared at her, chewing with it's grinding jaw motion. "Now, don't get me wrong, Stumpy dear, it isn't that I really like you much, but it was hard enough taming you, I'm not gonna do that again. Well," she amended, "not unless I have to. I wouldn't go without a ride here."

It was still nearing mid-day when a bright comet-like light streaked across the sky, unnoticed by the stranded human. She was too busy having herself a snack of local fruits and some dried meats, listening for the tell-tale buzz-clack of Blood-bees. 


	15. Hunting the Huntress

DISCLAIMER: I own Yeyinde, Hannah, Kec'than, Ti'ka'il, the Ki-ki, and the Tharian slave-girl, That's it! Everything else belongs to respective owners.

This and the previous chapter were not beta read. So if anyone wants to check spelling, punctuation, and grammar, feel free. Please send me revised version. Much appreciated!

**Kuragari1024** I'm glad to hear ya like it.

**tain89** Don't worry, things _should_ get better for them eventually.

-=-=-=-Hehl Flora and Fauna-=-=-=-  
Blood-bees: Hive minded creatures with extremely thick hides much like plate armor, scyth like forlegs and barbs down their back. Top of the food chain. Poisonous bite. Gather blood like earth bees gather nectar.

Rextor: Giant T-rex like raptor dinosaurs. Hunt alone, avoid blood-bees, finding them more of an annoyance and no gain for them from a battle. Carnivore

Minrapts: Slightly shorter than an average human, hunt in pairs, flee the blood-bees, minrapts are prey for them. Carnivore

Brushnecks: Small brachiosaurus like creatures with dappled brown-green skin and short (two and a half foot max) necks. Named for their herbivore diets.

Buffs: Buffalo like creatures with long thick fatty tails and horns similar to earth style longhorn cattle. herbivore, main meat dietary suppliment to Hannah's diet.

First-aid Berries: Green diamond shaped fruit with antibiotic/clotting agent juice.

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Stopping only at planets listed on the travel logs of the mothership that he and Hannah had docked with took far too long in Yeyinde's mind. He was getting tired of searching planet after planet for his marooned love, and coming up with less than zilch. A part of him mind that spoke eerily in Hannah's voice reminded him that at least he knew where she _wasn't_ at, which meant it narrowed down the places she _could be_ at. Though each planet that he left without success stirred up a sinking fear within him, he wondered if he would ever find her. Would she be lost to him forever?

His dreams were filled with the human calling out for him, begging for help, pleading for her life. And he found she was so far away, and he could hardly move towards her. It felt like he was running in circles, taking two steps back for every step forward. He grew restless, the interior of the ship showed many new scars, places where he decided to vent his anger on the solid metal. He had new large skulls from various creatures displayed. The restlessness turned to recklessness, and he took chances, fighting creatures that no lone warrior would take on. His body boasted new scars, he displayed them proudly, though he didn't stay long in one place, always searching for his Little Warrior. He could still remember her scent, and the way her soft locks felt against his skin. He remembered how much they enjoyed talking, even debating topics that he would not have thought himself so well versed on. Things like food, how he preferred things cooked as to how she preferred her food to taste. He agreed to try her style of food and she agreed to try his. Her's was spicey, she called it curry. He ended up actually liking it. His was more bland compared to hers, but his taste buds were much more fine tuned than hers. He took a deep breath to push the memories away, focusing on finding his lost hunt-sister and beloved.

Time dragged on, but at the same time it seemed to slip by. The search felt like it was taking forever, but the days that Hannah stayed lost seemed to pile up, leering at him with sinister faces. Most of the faces looked like the Elder that had caused all of this. She had torn him and Hannah apart, and sent Hannah far from him. He growled and tried to keep her out of his mind, focusing on Hannah and her rescue from whatever peril she could be in. No, that was not a good idea either, it caused a feeling he had not felt since he was but a pup, panic. Focus on Hannah. Everything about her, how good it would feel to have her back and safe with him. Safe. He found that amusing, how was she safe with him? He had brought her into reach of Kec'than, he had let her fall to him and she was hurt because of it. If he had only left her on her own planet she would have been safe. If only. Life was full of 'If only's', and there was little he could do about it. He focused his time solely on finding Hannah as time wore on, hunting only what was convinent and in his way.

He played back recordings of her voice, practice tapes of her speaking Yaut'ja. He could hear her laugh when she messed up, and his own voice as he said the words correctly. She spoke well enough, though her accent was obvious and she blundered a few words. He leaned back, as the ship navigated on auto-pilot, and listened to her speak.

_"Yeyinde! I sound like Ziva David! I keep getting the wrong words in sentances! I'm up a creek without a paddle here!" Hannah complained, falling into her seat, "of course Ziva would'a said something like 'poodle' instead." Her eyes danced with laughter when she saw his confused face. "She's a character from a TV show back on earth. Remember I told you about television?" _

His own voice came on then,

_"Visual audio recordings made for entertainment or the furthering of knowledge," He was controlling their ship around an asteroid field, watching for strays that could cause more damage to his already rickety ship._

Hannah nodded, "yeah, Ziva David is from the show N.C.I.S. she's a, eh.. well, she finds bad guys basically. By the evidence left behind at the scene of crimes. She's from Israel, while the show takes place in America. She uses the wrong words all the time when trying to say stuff. Downside of multiple languages on one planet I suppose." She yawned, "I'm tired of practice! It's getting boring!"

"I'm sorry, I cannot understand your 'english'" Yeyinde said, his amusement clearly evident in his voice. He was getting good at emulating human speech patterns and emotional inflection.

Hannah growled at him and repeated the sentance in yaut'ja. **That better? May we do something else now?** She tried to sound annoyed, but since the clicking and other sounds that the yaut'ja made conveyed their emotions, her speech pattern was very monotonous, though Yeyinde could tell due to his fluent english. Both their lingual skills increased over time. While the human words were hard for him to speak, they were easy to learn. In Hannah's part however, the words were hard to speak, and hard to remember, but she did well with a little prodding from her alien co-pilot.

"I think perhaps it is time to bring you to my people." Yeyinde informed her.

"Really? Awesome! How long will that take?" Hannah asked, sitting upright in her chair.

Yeyinde looked down at a screen in front of him, "there is a mothership not far. It should not take us more than two of your weeks to reach it. It is of my clan. You will be welcomed there."

Those words pained him now. He had been so sure, he had told her nothing would go wrong and she would be safe by his side. Oh how he'd been wrong. And now it was up to him to make up for his mistake. He took a deep breath, in an attempt to keep himself calm, but a blood red haze floated in front of his eyes and he roared, cursing the elder that had sent Hannah far from him, and locked him away. He stood and turned, his ki'cti-pa flicking out with an easy movement, the shrieked along the interior, leaving a long trail down to the hatch before he retracted them. Standing in front of his trophy wall he growled lowly, still cursing the Elder. He looked up at Hannah's first trophy and his nerves calmed, his shoulders dropping a little as he relaxed.

A beeping sounded from the cockpit and he ignored it for a few moments before turning. As he approached he saw that he was being hailed by a long distance live-feed. Pressing a button an image popped up on screen. Ti'ka'il.

**Yeyinde! Forgive me for not contacting you sooner. I was forbidden by the council. Have you found Hannah yet?** She asked. She was breathing heavily and looked disheveled as though she'd run a far distance.

**No, but I am running out of planets on the list. I will find her soon.** He told her with confidence, sitting down so that he could be seen easier on her screen.

She gave her head a shake, **No, the planet they left her on was erased from the records. You will never find her by that list.** She glanced back behind her and then leaned in closer to the microphone, speaking softly, **I will send you the coordinates, but you must erase any proof of this transmission, or we shall both be in grave danger. There is rumors of a coup on the ship. I do not know if it is Bic'tavik or not.** Both growled softly at the mention of the Elders name.

Yeyinde took a moment and closed his eyes, steeling himself for what he was about to say, **Do not risk it, sister. It is too much. You have the pups to watch, and your mates honor to protect. I will find her, she must be on a planet near one of these then, for we did not go off course greatly at any time. Do not take the risk.** The words twisted in his gut. So close to finding her but he could not let his sister fall for his desire to find Hannah.

**Nonsense, Hannah is near enough my sister now. I cannot abandon her when she was wronged. I am sending them. Make sure that this never existed, commit the coordinates to memory, do not record them anywhere, _little_ brother.** She pushed a few buttons on her side and a set of coordinates appeared on screen. **Also clear your travel logs of the planet. You will have to take Hannah far from the clan for a while. Until this all cools over. Or else she will be at a great risk. I do not want to lose her either.** Ti'ka'il glanced over her shoulder, **I must go now. Paya's grace be with you, and Centanu's will guide you.** The screen went dark before he could reply.

Looking once more at the coordinates, Yeyinde set them into the navigational computer and set out. He didn't bother to erase the log, the recorder device had stopped working some time ago. It would not be long now, and he would be looking onto the countenance of his human love and partner. She put a joy into his lonely life that no one else had been able to before, he was not about to let that slip away so easily.

Not far off, following silently Kec'than's ship monitored the audio in the Guan-thwei via a small microphone he'd placed when he first attacked Hannah. He found himself grinning yaut'ja style, and turned his ship, keeping on Yeyinde's trail. He would have his revenge. When that worthless soft-hearted warrior found his little human whore, he would kill her. He could imagine it now, their joyous faces suddenly ripped apart, literally if he was lucky. **Geeta! Get in here!** He growled and turned to her as she scurried into the room, slightly limping from a previous beating, **If you don't move faster next time you'll find yourself only able to crawl! Now, I find myself hungry, fetch me something. And something to drink.**

Geeta hurried off to the back storage room, hurrying as fast as she could, her four jointed fingers setting to work hurrying to make a meal for her master. She silently cursed him, and repeated her self oath that she would one day end his life.

As his slave brought his food, Kec'than followed after Yeyinde's ship, making move for move, so if he were detected on scanners his ship would only appear as a scanner echo. He had to watch closely or he would go too far off course, and his guise would be lost.

Yeyinde watched his controls, for a second his proximity scanners showed a blip, but then it faded away. _I need to fix that as well it seems, I'm getting shadows. I'm starting to think it would be wiser to petition a new ship. I have gained nearly enough valor marks. Besides, I would like a safer place for Hannah._ He found himself thinking more and more about providing for Hannah's needs. It made him laugh at himself, he saw some of his father in him now. He'd always thought his father doting on his mother, but now he understood it. Shaking his head he looked up at the sketch on the viewport support. He remembered those first few days, even then he'd been surprisingly comfortable with Hannah. They just fell in togeher well, and he missed that. She had learned how he thought, how he acted, every bit about him. She made him smile, and let him feel joy that no other did, and that was why he loved her. Not because of her physical features, nor her prowess in battle, though she had proved that she could be a worthy huntress, she was a Young Blood already.

Switching on a different recording Yeyinde leaned back and listened to his loves sweet voice.

_"Yeyinde? I can't get this right." Came Hannah's confused voice, "I'm completely lost." She sighed and dropped into her seat, turning it to face him. "There's no way I'm ever going to learn all this!" She ran a hand through her ever lengthening hair. It frazzled around her face and she blew it._

Watching the pale strands of hair float up then fall back to frame her face Yeyinde laughed, "Don't worry, Little Warrior, you will learn. Let me see what it is that has you in such a mess." He reached over and snatched the pad easily from her, "Ahh I see. Hm, perhaps in this case you should use the more formal approach, I doubt this will come up, I will be your teacher, and I do not care what you call me in private. But the only time it would matter would be in public where the formal useage would be more appropriate anyway." He handed the pad back to her and leaned back, kicking his feet up onto the powered down console. "It would be a difficult word for you to pronounce anyway, and it's always acceptable to use a formal pronoun instead of an informal."

Accepting the device back Hannah nodded, "I suppose that makes sense." She tossed the pad onto the console near his feet and stood, taking a couple steps she slid herself onto his lap and slid her arms around his neck. "Anything else you'd like me to call you?" She asked in a voice that made the blood pound in his ears, and rush a lower. She nuzzled against him and nipped his shoulder playefully, knowing how much that turned him on.

Rumbling deeply his grip on her tightened slightly, "Hannah," he said in a low warning voice. He leaned her back and looked into her eyes, reaching up he stroked her cheek softly, "You should not start what you cannot yet finish." The way she leaned her face against his hand made a stir of strong emotions rise up in him. Just how much she trusted him and loved him as well always surprised him. He knew that to her he must look as monstrous as she seemed strange to him. He looked into her and saw the warrior and the strong personality, so capable of fierceness in both battle and love. How deeply caring she was, and a joy at all times. She cried and hurt, but even then, he would not wish her away. He wanted to fight away everything that terrorized her, and at first it had been hard for him. He could not figure how to fight her pains, he was a warrior and knew combat better than most, but he found this was a battle that he did not have the skills to fight. Eventually Hannah had showed him how to win the battle, by holding her, assuring her, and earning her trust by keeping her safe. He had promised nothing would ever hurt her again. 

Scrunching his face and growling at the memories he was reminded how he had failed to protect Hannah. Yeyinde turned off the recording and checked his flight path.

Kec'than snarled silently in disgust at the sound of the recording coming over the speakers. _How pathetic!_ He would enjoy destroying the human female, watching her plead for her life, futile though it would be. He could already see the heat patterns her blood would make as it spilled from her body, her face contorted in agony. He had yet to decide if he would kill the human first or second. Did he want Yeyinde, the traitorous scum, to watch her die, or that plain, tiny, weak, and worthless whore to watch her 'protector' die first? Looking at the ship he followed a low chuckle rose from his throat, he still had time to decide. The thoughts brought up a reaction in him and he called back to Greeta, "SLAVE! Attend me!" His eyes never left the ship he followed, his thoughts always on the death of the two star-crossed lovers. 


	16. Kec'than's Demise

GaiaMother: Next chappy all up and going. Hope ya likin' how it's turning out!

Kuragari1024: I'm so glad you think so!

tain89: Don't worry, she'll get her revenge.

GaiaMother: I am definately trying to get this story updated faster. Glad you like it!

Disclaimer: I dont own AVP, just my characters. Jaslene is PlushieBeauties though.

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I HAVE LITTLE PRACTICE WITH FIGHT SCENES, SO CONCRIT WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED!

-=-=-=-Hehl Flora and Fauna-=-=-=-  
Blood-bees: Hive minded creatures with extremely thick hides much like plate armor, scyth like forlegs and barbs down their back. Top of the food chain. Poisonous bite. Gather blood like earth bees gather nectar.

Rextor: Giant T-rex like raptor dinosaurs. Hunt alone, avoid blood-bees, finding them more of an annoyance and no gain for them from a battle. Carnivore

Minrapts: Slightly shorter than an average human, hunt in pairs, flee the blood-bees, minrapts are prey for them. Carnivore

Brushnecks: Small brachiosaurus like creatures with dappled brown-green skin and short (two and a half foot max) necks. Named for their herbivore diets.

Buffs: Buffalo like creatures with long thick fatty tails and horns similar to earth style longhorn cattle. herbivore, main meat dietary suppliment to Hannah's diet.

Frill-snakes: Snake like creatures with pronged mouths and frills running down their sides. Mud colored.

First-aid Berries: Green diamond shaped fruit with antibiotic/clotting agent juice.

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It was a normal bright morning, both suns rising in tandem. She finally found the smaller sun somehow orbited the larger, dancing across the sky. She watched the suns rising for a few moments, then turned back into the cave. She was working on tanning some hides, it took her a few months to figure out how, but after a while she'd learned. Grinning at the back wall she had trophy skulls lined up, large carnivores, mostly the Rextors, and a couple rather well grown Minrapts. There were aquatic creatures, much like crocodiles, but she never went to the ocean waters where they were. It was salt water, she stayed near the fresh water streams, there wasn't much life in them, nothing dangerous except for snake like creatures. They had pronged mouths and frills down their sides. They reminded her of the creatures from Stargate, the goa'uld, they also looked sorta like eels, she just called them Frill-snakes. They fed off little pests and eggs, and there was hardly any meat on them. Useless really, just pests. Slowly over time she learned to save everything useful from her kills, and found uses for most things. She had a full set of bone tools, utensils, cooking pots, and a 'skillet' made from a shoulder-blade scavenged from a dead Rextor. It was larger than any she'd seen live, possibly quite old. Her scyth blades, long one sided blades with straight handles on the end of wide, slightly curved blades. The handles were seperate bits of plate, with the connective tissue from the scyth part of the blood-bee leg wrapped around them, when the tissue dried it held the handle in tight and solid. They were black with the blade edge almost silver. Along the back ran the thick edge, that had a slightly sharpened edge, one side working as a super sharp blade that rarely dulled the other a blunt force that could cut if dragged forcefully against an opponent. They were relatively light, not as light as Yaut'ja metal but nearly so, and about as long as her arm. Using a whetting stone made from a blood-bee foot, she kept them razor sharpened. Only once did she ever make the mistake of letting them dull, it had nearly cost her life.

Stumpy bellowed from outside, drawing Hannah's attention. She grabbed her ever present scyth weapons and crept out to see what the disturbance was. After a few moments of scouting her surroundings from the cave entrance, she moved quietly, reaching her mount she patted the creature, quieting him with soft noises. Once he had quieted and returned to his munching on greens, she made her way up to a small ledge where she had a good vantage point, and a bow with arrows. Not many of the creatures could see her from up there, and part of the way up required scaleing a cliff face, even the Minrapts couldn't follow her. She crawled up there, crouching below a hide cover, she stayed in the shade. Taking her bow she notched and arrow and continued to scan the area. There wasn't even a slight breeze rustling the leaves, but down near the end of the trail to her home, the bushes were moving. Taking aim at the spot she waited, with a learned patience. The leaves continued to rustle, but she did not see anything coming from them. Steading her breathing for an optimum shot she stilled, not moving for the entire time she saw movement.

Half and hour later when the bushes stilled, she relaxed, taking in her surroundings, she leaned to one side, stretching out one leg then the other. She saw evidence of blood-bee activity where the minrapt bodies were, there wasn't much left of the bodies. What was there was strewn about, little rodents tearing bloodless flesh off the corpses and sneaking it away. Unhooking the water skin from her belt she took a long drink, fastening it off she stuck it back on her belt and leaned back, listening for movement. Stumpy was quiet, and she couldn't hear anything other than the scavengers below. Until a strangely familiar clicking reached her ears. It stirred memories and emotions she had spent many painful months hiding away deep within her. She rocked forward onto the balls of her feet, crouched still, alert eyes taking in every detail of her surroundings. Footprints, broken branches, he was sloppy. Shoving another bone-dagger into her belt and stringing her quiver and bow over her shoulder she slid the flat rock off the little pocket of stones, pulling a first-aid berry and stuck it in a pouch on her hip where another sat, half used. Grabbing her two scyth weapons she scurried as quickly as she dared down to the entrance to her home. Glancing that Stumpy had provisions, she made her way down the hill side, following a dreadfully obvious trail.

_You know better than this. You're making too many mistakes._ She thought as she followed the trail further. After almost and hour of tracking she started to get an uneasy feeling. Something didn't feel right about the trail, it was way too obvious. A few minutes later clouds had gathered in the typical ever changing weather of Hehl. Rain started to drizzle down, erasing some of the trail. Hannah growled lowly. Her throat rougher after an illness had wracked her once, only a couple months ago. Speaking what Yaut'ja she remembered became easier, the harsh sounds required were easy to mimic now, well at least most were. She still lacked the vocal structures for many sounds. Hearing a noise far off she brought her scyths to the ready and sunk into a defensive crouch, eyes wide and flicking back and forth, ever alert for movement. Scent was out of the question, the rain was masking odors now, not that her sense of smell was anything special. Not seeing any she followed the trail further, until the signs seemed to stop. Backtracking a few feet she took it all in, seeing scratch marks heading up a tree she looked upward, seeing a slight shimmer in the air, rain pattering off of it. **"Who are you?"** She asked, then repeated in English.

The creature laughed, **"An old friend, you pathetic bitch!"** The image fizzed and suddenly Kec'than appeared. **"It's time for you to die!"** He dropped down, ki'cti-pa bearing down on the drenched human. He missed as she sprung back, landing in deep foliage. An annoyed growl escaped him and he fired his shoulder cannon, but there was nothing to hit. She'd moved on already, circling to his right, in silent well practiced steps. He sliced outward with his right arm, coming into contact with her scyth blades, crossed to block him. The attack pushed her back, and he turned on her, raising his left arm, blades extended, bringing them down.

Pushing against his right blades, Hannah shoved herself back, barely escaping his left arm. Leaping to the side, she leapt a fallen tree and looked for an escape route. _How is it he's alive? I thought Yeyinde killed him!_ She paced back as he advanced on her. Her mind was three moves ahead of her body. She'd spent every morning going through combat routines, working in circles, fluid motions. One the motions became easy to her, she'd taught herself to protect a spot, imaging a person there beside her. She learned to protect that spot, to guard it. Never had she yet figured out why she needed to learn that, but it always seemed like a good idea. Working now, from any position with at least one of her scyth blades she could reach any point on the clock. On her arm were bee plate vambraces, that stood up even to the kic'ti-pa that she was fending off. Twirling and spinning as she moved she deflected blow after blow. While she couldn't physically stop a blow from the yaut'ja, she was able to redirect the motion. A well deflected strike cost her little energy and even less effort, but a poorly deflected strike pounded down her frame and used more strength to push away. Twisting out of the way of a strike she caught a bit of motion and ducked, nearly getting hit with a plasma blast. _This is rediculous! I can't keep this up!_ Panic rose in her, and she pushed it back. _No, I have to win. I can't let him beat me, it's just not an option._ She redoubled her efforts and leapt away, getting a little more space between her and the bad blood hunter.

Kec'than laughed, a low gravely rumble, **"Where do you think you're going? You cannot think to outrun me! How pathetic!"** He aimed his sivkva-tai again, the three dots landing on the pauk-de human's face. _Too easy. I want her to suffer._ Switching off his cannon the three red dots disappeared. A sound drew his attention away from Hannah momentarily. Not too far off a large heat signature appeared on his visor display. _PAUK! I do not need interferrence!_ He turned his gaze back on the human who was backing away still, her stance nearly a perfect defense. **"I'll be back for you. Enjoy your last moments of life."** With that he turned and chased down the creature, one that unknown to him Hannah refered to as a Rextor. He would elimnate the local distractions, he wanted to be able to take his time and draw out the human's pain.

Hannah blinked in surprise. _Did he just..? He did._ Standing straight she let her guard down and watched the bad blood disappear into the jungle. Turning she made her way back to her home, checking on her mount she saw Stumpy was standing still, napping. She stepped into her abode, her wooden walls half finished still she looked at them and wondered if it was still the higher priority. Reaching over she untied the leather flap that worked as a door and let it fall shut, light drifting in through the open section where the wall was unfinished. A stack of rocks opened and revealed a deep pocket filled with dried foods. She pulled out a strip of meat and chewed on it. Her mind was pondering Kec'than's appearance on Hehl. "How did he find me here? I thought Yeyinde had killed him!" She snarled to herself.

Landing on a flat plateau, Yeyinde left the _Guan-thwei_ cloaked, and did the same for his armor. He had seen what looked to be a rough dwelling from overhead, but there was no where for him to land near it. He had a long walk ahead of him and he set out at a brisk pace. He knew he shouldn't overextert but enthusiasm set his stride a few notches faster than it should have been. He was nearly there when he had to stop and wait. His pride didn't want him to show up huffing and puffing in front of Hannah. Hannah, just saying her name this close set his crazed mind back on track. It was like all the time alone, the strange empty spinning his world had started doing faded into a rythmic beat, the same beat of Hannah's heart. He'd listened to it many nights as she slept, her breathing occasionally erratic as her apnea plauged her. Occasionally the dreams interrupted her restful sleep, and he wanted to chase her every terror away. _You fool, how could you do that when you couldn't even keep her safe from your own Elders? You will be lucky if she can find it in her to forgive you._ A cold streak of fear leapt through him, what if she couldn't forgive him? He should have been here, he should have kept her safe. It was his fault, he had failed her.

It was not long later he came upon the primative shelter. Though he did see with an appreciative eye that it was well made. The tools, the bed, the storage, all well done and planned. In his mind though, it should never have been there. She should have been spending her time with him, on his ship, not stuck in some cave on a backwater uncivilized planet. Ducking his head through the wooden frame he looked her construction over and gave it a slight shake. It was sturdy and held well, he was proud of her. Inside the bed was well layered and soft, the food storage full. The fire ring was set and ready to light, there were hot coals burning in a pit deep, putting of good heat, but also keeping a carved bone pot of water hot. He could see evidence of where she boiled water for drinking and cooking. There were hides in various stages of care, and a smoke rack that had recently been used to dry the food in the stacked stone storage container. Off to the side were slightly bloodied tools, fine made little things that looked to be used for medical purposes, along with green diamond shaped pods. He inspected them, catching the scent of Hannah's blood, and the antiseptic smell of the green things. She was taking care of herself.

He glanced back out at the creature penned outside, it slept still. There was a harness and a crude saddle, apparently she rode the thing. Stepping back he sat down on her bed, leaning against the wall he decided the easiest way to find her would be to let her come to him. By the time he heard someone approaching he'd almost nodded off. Checking that his cloak was working, he stayed still, a warriors stillness. Soon Hannah herself stepped into the cave. He wanted to jump up and rush to her, but he stilled himself, watching her move. Something was different. She had gained confidence, and her stride was more sure of herself. She had the aura of a warrior about her, more than she had ever had before. She was well armed, and not poorly armored. He could see she was worn and tired, it looked as though she'd been in a recent battle. As she leaned down to take a peice of dried meat from her storage he could see a long ragged scar on her back. He found it appealing, wanting to reach out to her, to take in her new feel. He could see the muscles in her body were toned and corded, like a feline. She looked relaxed but he was sure she could strike out at any moment. Pride swelled within him. She was a true warrior now, moreso than he could ever have hoped she could have achieved under hit tutelage.

Her voice startled him out of his admiration of her. How did who find her? Taking a deep breath he could faintly catch Kec'than's scent on her. _THAT BASTARD!_ He closed his eyes a moment then opened them as he spoke, **"I failed to kill him, my love. I am sorry."** He stood then, disabling his camoflage cloak, "I am sorry, for so much. Hannah." Stepping forward he watched her wide eyes stare at him in shock.

"Y-y-ye..you..you're-" Her breathing came heavier as her mind whirred rapid paced, "How.. why? I.. they.." Finally her mouth moved and no sound came forth. She didn't know what to say, there was so much she had thought to say before, but now that he stood in front of her she was confused. Reaching her hand forward she came into contact with him, feeling the solid form she felt tears well in her eyes. She wasn't imagining this, she wasn't dreaming him up. "Yeyinde," she breathed and threw herself at him, her arms going around his waist. "Oh god Yeyinde!" Tears streamed down her face as he embraced her back. "I was so afraid you'd forget me! I thought you wouldn't come for me!" She sobbed against his chest as he knelt and tucked her form against his.

Purring loudly Yeyinde cradled her near him, stroking her hair, lightened by the dual suns, wiping the tears from her sun-freckled cheeks. "I am here, and now nothing will keep up apart. Never again will I lose you, my Little Warrior." He rocked back onto the bed and drew her close, "It was my fault, I should not have-" Her hand touched his mandibles, hushing him. He nodded and held her close, letting her adjust before he offered up his apologies.

**"How touching, you found your little whore,"** a voice sounded from the door. Kec'than sneered at them, his plasma cannon aiming, the red trio of dots landing on the back of Hannah's head.

Hannah's head whipped up and she twisted from Yeyinde's hold, her scyth blades ringing like clear metal chimes as she drew them from her belt, growling at the bad blood. **"Tuck your tail and run, you honorless bug!"** She hissed at him. She was standing clear, drawing his attention away from Yeyinde, who could not stand that far back in the cave. Taking the opportunity to attack as Kec'than formulated a retort, she slashed with both scythes, drawing a vivid green line on his left upper arm. It was a short cut and shallow, but it made the dishonored yaut'ja snarl. Bounding away from her attack, Hannah landed and spun on her heel, changing her direction and moving as a hastily aimed plasma bolt cut through the wooden wall where she'd just stood. Glancing back, she saw Yeyinde had moved forward and could stand. He had his combistick in hand and crouched to fight.

As Hannah left his arms, he tried to stand, crouching he stepped forward, watching her attack, it was sudden, but well planned. She knew what she was doing. He wondered briefly what she faced that had taught her that. As soon as Kec'than fired he drew out his combistick, engaging the device it extended in his hands. **"What are you doing Kec'than? What do you think you can gain? More dishonor?"** He saw his brother turn to him, keeping both he and Hannah in his vision. **"You're a fool, you're outnumbered!"** He struck forward, jabbing at his brother as Hannah leapt again, slicing with her weapons. She landed another small cut, and he missed. Kec'than reckoned the yaut'ja warriors combistick a more deadly strike than the human's blades. Hannah stepped back as Yeyinde pushed forward, making Kec'than retreat out the door. Once outside, Kec'than swung his kic'ti-pa, slicing at both Hannah and Yeyinde. The first ducked and the latter backstepped. Hannah recovered first slicing in an upper cut motion, the blunt edge of her scyth connecting squarely with his jaw, knocking his head back. He stumbled, falling against Stumpy's makeshift pen. The creature bleated and tugged at it's tether. Yeyinde's next attack knocked Kec'than to the side and both he and Hannah advanced. Kec'than fired once he regained his footing, Yeyinde leaping to the right, down the hill side, and Hannah leaping up to the left, clinging to the rocky cliff face. All three cursed in yaut'ja. Firing again at Hannah, his shot landed short, but caused the human to fall backwards with a shout of surprise. Yeyinde's combistick lashed out towards his face. He backstepped, avoiding the attack but backing himself into the cliff, as the weapon lodged itself into the stone. He turned and scaled it easily, Hannah not far behind. Her smaller lithe form followed a well known path up the side of her home cliff. Kec'than reached the flat ledge only a moment before her. He spun as she gained footing, already crouched low, her scyths at the ready.

Yeyinde cursed, moving up the hill he grabbed his combistick, and gave a sharp tug. It held fast. Turning his gaze to the spear like weapon he pulled harder, removing it from it's stone prison. Giving a twist to the center, the combistick retracted and he attached it to his belt, and looked up to see Hannah and Kec'than exchanging blows. Hannah was defensive, only able to get in one or two attacks, while Kec'than beat at her mercilessly. Climbing quickly, Yeyinde reached the top in time to brace Hannah as she was pushed back. He extended his own kic'ti-pa, wristblades, and joined in the attack. With little warning Kec'than fired four rapid shots, pushing Hannah and Yeyinde back near the edge.

Turning to the cliff face, Kec'than scaled the wall again, quickly reaching a flat top that was not visible from overhead. His own ship was there, cloaked. He turned to fire his sivkva-tai again, but a thrown dagger dislodged it from his shoulder. Roaring in anger he yanked the damaged weapon off and hurled it back towards his ship. It clanked off the hull and landed in the reddish dust. He drew his own combistick and twirled it expertly. Two against one, he was better off keeping them at a distance until he could kill or seriously injure one of them. Hannah was the first up the cliff again, already knowing the quickest way up. Yeyinde was only a few seconds behind her, but it was enough. Kec'than jabbed straight forward, Hannah ducked and rolled away, standing she spun one blade out knocking the combistick aside, and made an upward slice with the other severing the cables running to his mask. It went black in front of him, and he swung his combistick in the last known location of the human. It connected solidly, and sent her sprawling. Taking the moment to tear off his mask and fling it back towards his shoulder cannon, he barely brought his combistick up in time to block Yeyinde's attack.

Hannah hit the ground and rolled, dropping one of her blades. Her head spun from the hit. He'd caught her shoulder but as his attack carried through he'd also managed to knock her in the side of the head. Gathering herself for a second she glanced around for her blade. It was a few feet in front of her. She stood, ignoring the pounding in her head, taking note of the trickle of blood on the side of her face. She reached up and wiped at it, not wanting it to get in her eyes and foul her vision. Snatching her blade up she spun them both, to get back into her battle mindset, and leapt forward at Kec'than, both slicing with one blade and jabbing with the other. Both attacks landed. She sliced his side and stabbed his thigh. He roared out in pain and pushed Yeyinde back, throwing his arm out, catching her under the chin, sending her stumbling back. She hit his invisible ship solidly, knocking the wind out of her lungs she slumped to the ground. As her vision swam she heard a mechanical hiss and drag. Turning her pounding head she saw a hatch opening on the ship, the tharian slave girl Kec'than kept stood there. **"Help us, and you'll be free"** Hannah choked out, as air began to creep back into her lungs. The slave said nothing in return, and looked frightened. Figuring it was a lost cause, the human grabbed one of her blades, the other had been thrown to far to fetch. Gripping it with two hands she threw herself back into battle.

Greeta stood watching the little human and the gray-green yaut'ja fighting her master. His brown-gray skin was splashed with bright green blood, as was the gray-green skin of his brother. The human sported bright red splotches of what the Tharian assumed was blood. Her own was a pale blue, much like her skin. Her wide round eyes took in the fight, pure black pits gathering information. Her mouth was wide and thin-lipped, her nose barely more than two nostrils, long black hair, fine as silk poured over her shoulders, four blue head spikes jutted out from her locks, leaned backwards and trailing down in a straight line. Her four fingered hands worked nervously over each other as she wondered what to do. Her fleshy cloven feet pattered back and forth along the hatch doorway, ratted robe like dress fluttering about her. As she paced she made a nervous _tik-tik-tik_ that Hannah probably would have associated with a hunting domestic cat from earth. A milky white inner eyelid flashed over each eye as she watched the fight progress. From somewhere in her dress she pulled a long dagger that she had filched from Kec'than's armory. She held it, waiting and watching.

Yeyinde managed to knock Kec'than's combistick away, and was now fighting against his kic'ti-pa with his own. Hannah's blade flashed in, skillfully staying out of his way. She landed hits now and then, but mostly kept Kec'than from landing well aimed blows on Yeyinde. He could tell that his Little Warrior was running out of energy, she was slowing and her strikes were getting a bit sloppy, though she hadn't actually messed up yet. Her blade flashed out and sliced at Kec'than's arm, going through flesh and muscle. The bad blood roared out and swung at her, Yeyinde took the opening to knock his other arm away and jab forward, landing a deep gut wound. His brother cried out, and backed away, realizing he could not win this battle. Both Yeyinde and Hannah moved forward, pushing him back. Yeyinde stepped over Hannah's dropped blade and swung again at Kec'than, only to be parried, and attacked. He too parried, ducking back. He silently cursed as Kec'than retreated towards the open hatch. Once he got inside there was little that could be done. Kec'than had voice operated interior defenses.

Eyes gleaming victoriously Kec'than staggered back into the hatch, **"We'll finish this next time you mis-"** his insult turned into a roar of pain, and his hand scrabbled at his back before he fell slack to the ground. Greeta stood behind him, quivering, as he hit the dirt, one of his own daggers buried in his spine.

Both Hannah and Yeyinde looked at the slave-girl, then to each other and back again. There was a moment before anyone moved, then the Tharian fell to her knees, great tears spilling from her eyes. Yeyinde looked to Hannah, watching the human stumble forward, exhausted she gently embraced the former slave, murmering comforts to her in yaut'ja. He looked to his brothers body, switching views he confirmed that his brother was indeed, finally dead. His gaze travelled back to Hannah. She had carried the majority of the fight herself, he was amazed. Even though it was the slave that had killed the bad blood, Hannah had done most of the fighting. Once again he found himself proud of her. Giving a deep sigh he reached down, pulling the dagger free, he drug his brother's corpse away and pulled out a vial of blue liquid, doing what he should have done the first time he though Kec'than dead, destroying his body. There would be no mistake this time.

Hannah gently patted the hysterical females shoulder, **"You have nothing to worry about, we'll take you home now. You're free."** She repeated similar things over and over, in a reassuring voice, watching as Yeyinde poured blue acid on Kec'than's body. **"He's gone, he wont ever be able to hurt anyone ever again,"** now she wasn't sure who she was reassuring, be it herself or the crying blue skinned girl. She smiled as Yeyinde turned his gaze on her, **"Come now, Yeyinde and I will take you home, there wont be any more trouble."** Soon she realized that the former slave was repeating thank you's over and over. She lead the girl out of the vile one's ship and into the warm sun. Once the girl was able to walk on her own, reduced to sniffling and smiling, still repeating thank you's, Hannah stepped away from her and over to Yeyinde. She stared at him, not sure what to say now, but she felt better now that he was here. After a few moments she asked, "We can take her home, right?"

Yeyinde nodded as he detached the connection cables to his mask and lifted it off, **"Of course,"** he told her, his yellow eyes locking with hers. "Hannah, I am sorry about what happened, I didn't have a voice in the matter, they locked me away." He reached his hand out, brushing her hair out of her wound, "We need to tend to that." He saw her smile at him, and she put her hand to his. Even after the doctors had said the pheramones had worn off, he'd thought of nothing but finding her, and now that he had, it was all worth it. He glanced over at the Tharian, "Yes, we will take her to her home planet." He felt Hannah embrace him, and he turned his attention back to her, holding her close to him again, "And I swear to you, nothing will ever take me from you, or you from me again." They stood there for a few moments longer, before making their way down to Hannah's little home, so she could gather her things.

Yeyinde left and returned with his ship, taking Hannah's things on board, though she left most of it behind, taking only her weapons for now. They both transferred her trophy skulls to the _Guan-Thwei_, and grabbed what little Greeta had, storing it on board as well. Hannah turned Stumpy loose, and patted his back, telling him he had been a wonderful friend and she thanked him for it. The creature meandered off and munched on some little shoots of bright green plants with slightly blue edges. Yeyinde told them that they would leave the next day, seeing as the two of them were both tired, and Greeta was in need of rest as well. She'd been underfed and overworked. Letting the Tharian rest in Hannah's bed, Yeyinde leaned back in his seat with Hannah on his lap. He was unwilling to let her go very far from him. Once he had tended to her wounds, she curled up against him and they talked for a while until she fell asleep. Sitting still, Yeyinde let her sleep, holding onto her and resting himself. Tomorrow they would continue on, taking Greeta home. After that... Well, he should probably put a call into Ti'ka'il. At least she could report on Kec'than's demise, have him stricken from the record of living bad bloods. He tried not to purr while Hannah slept, but he leaned his head back, his mandibles clacking in thought, his brother's death meant little more to him that valor points. He'd long ago come to terms with the fact that his brother would not live long, and he also had figured it would be by his hands that Kec'than died. He had no proof now though that Kec'than had murdered his mother. But at least her killer was dead. He did not want to take the matter up with the council now, he didn't want much to do with the council at all currently. Perhaps now would be a good time to ramble again, as he had before. He looked down at the sleeping figure, clutching to his heating mesh, _Yes, now would be a wonderful time to get away._ Tomorrow, all their lives would change. For the better, he hoped. 


	17. The Hunt Begins

**tain89:** yes all safe and sound... for now *evil laugh* I'm glad you liked the fight scene!

**Arwen Kurama:** Glad to hear it lovely, I'm rather happy I got back into it as well.

**wicked falcon:** Thank you so much! I'm so glad you like it!

**Kuragari1024:** You are correct, Arwen Kurama asked to borrow my characters, her story is an AU of mine. Her characters exist in my story, but wont come in to play. I don't know about a sequel, I am trying to finish this month, as work starts heavy soon for me, and I wont be able to update much.

Disclaimer as per usual

I forgot what color Hannah's eyes are...

Yeyinde woke to an empty lap, he looked around seeing the tharian still asleep, he stood and stretched, yawning wide. Giving his massive head a shake, his dreads clacking together as the metal bands collided, he glanced down to the aft of the ship, seeing no sign of Hannah he turned for the hatch. Stepping into the warm sunlight he saw Hannah going through paces, her blades held in steady and well trained hands. She limped, but it was hardly noticeable, and her right shoulder didn't seem to respond as well as her left. He remembered her being struck rather solidly yesterday. He'd not found any serious wounds, nothing broken, but she was bruised and he figured quite sore. Leaning against the hull of the _Guan-thwei_ he watched her for a time. The circle pattern she had developed was well thought out, he had a hard time finding weak spots in her defense, though he did. _I'll bring those up with her later,_ Yeyinde gave a quiet sigh, remembering his plans to train her himself. So much had been stolen from them in the past year. Thinking on it, it would be a year since they were seperated in only six of Hannah's Earth days. His hands balled up into fists and he slammed one against the hull, drawing Hannah's abrupt attention. He was pleased to see her instantly go into a defensive stance and back a few steps back. "You're up early."

Looking the tall warrior over, Hannah nodded and stood, sheathing her blades she gave a slight shrug and looked towards the sunrise, "No, not actually. I'm up rather late today, I suppose I was just worn out. I overslept." She reached into her belt pouch and pulled out a handfull of dried berries, popping them into her mouth. She'd found the little dark red agrigate berries were a good health food. They had good flavor, so she really didn't mind. Her diet on Hehl had actually been better than she'd ever had, contributing to her improved health. Her apnea still plauged her but her overall health was much better than it had ever been. Chewing thoughtfully she waggled a finger in the air, "Ya know... I think I'm going to miss this place. I named it Hehl, H-E-H-L, at first it was very fitting, the heat, the danger, the crappy food and living conditions. But now, well, it's my place ya know? Life was simple here." Turning her gaze on him her hazel eyes were darkened, "It's not going to get any easier now is it? Your people didn't want me then, they wont want me now either."

Yeyinde stepped forward until they were standing almost touching, "No, it will not. But I will never let you go, never again." He touched her cheek softly, "I asked you to be my mate before, do you still?" His golden eyes captured hers, "Because my feelings for you have never changed. I've wanted you by my side every moment, and each moment you were away seemed to take a lifetime." He could feel his heart pound nervously. After all that he had failed to do for her, she had every right to walk away from him now. He had promised her so much, and failed at everything. "Hannah, I... I need to know, if you forgive me. I should have stopped all of this." Stroking her cheek gently he watched her soft skin bend under even the light pressure of his caress, he saw she had a slightly darker tan, and many scars showing. Her shirt had been torn off, showing her bare midriff, her pants were half cut and half torn off above the knee, exposing her well sculpted legs. Her sleeves were non-existent, her arms toned and strong. She was hardly the little waif he had picked up long ago on a blue planet, in the middle of a snow storm. Only a year ago, and it seemed like so much had changed. Just being away from her, and seeing such a difference in her now, it was almost as though she was a new person completely. One he hardly knew. There was a hardness in her eyes that hadn't been there before, and her posture, she was relaxed and ready to strike at the same time. Everything he had thought to teach her, she had become without him. He knew from training that she had passed the most important developmental stage between master and pupil. It was when a hunting pair, almost always made from an older and wiser hunter and a young inexperienced Young Blood. He found himself painfully aware of her lifespan compared to his. Reaching out he took her shoulders and pulled her against him, **"Too much was taken from us. I don't want to waste our time together."** He let her pull away and look up at him.

**"Yeyinde,"** She spoke in Yaut'ja though her grammer was distorted due to her inability to pronounce some words causing her to search for different ways to say what she wanted. **"What they..stole, it is irreplaceable, but what is to come will be ours too. We will do our best with it."** She smiled at him and gave his forearm an affectionate rub. "There is a creature, the hive queen of the Blood-Bee's. Her skull is huge. I've always intended to hunt her. Would you come with me? Hunt her with me!" She practically pleaded. "I don't think I could have been able to take her down on my own." Sliding one of her scyth blades out, she held it up, "Her scyth blades are about three times this size, maybe even more. I've only seen her once, but I got a good view of her. Two sets of scyths, four ground legs, two working legs, pincers on her mouth. Her skull, there's a crest that's as tall as me! Solid, absolutely solid. As hard as Kainde Amedha hides!" She paused from the pacing she had started while describing the Blood-bee queen, "Ya know... they look a lot alike, have similar habits, do you suppose they're related at some point? I mean, Blood-bee's dont require a host from larval to adult stages, but-" She stopped when she heard a deep rumbling laughter.

Yeyinde was laughing, a roaring bellowing sound. "You, my Little Warrior, are amazing. Yes, they are a similar species, I studied some while I was imprisoned in the medic bay." Giving her hair a ruffle he realized suddenly that she had cut it short. "When did you cut your hair?" He asked lifting the feathered strands in his fingers. It did look good, framing her tanned face in it's pale golden wisps, but her long hair had been so beautiful on her, and so fitting for a warrior.

Hannah ran a quick hand through her hair, messing it into wild strands. "Yeah, not too long after I was... after I got here. It got in the way and it was too hard to manage." She remembered her attempts to clean her waist length hair with what little supplies she had. At first she had sand-scrubbed it the way she had bathed her body, but even that did nothing for it. Then on one of her hunts she had gotten blood from a blood-bee nest in her hair. At some point they mix it with their own saliva, and the end result stays tacky and never dries, and is practically impossible to wash out. So she'd sliced off almost all of her hair, and kept it short now. She started feeling odd, her skin warming and her hands shaking, her body going a little numb. Flexing her hands she reached into her pouch she pulled out a few more dried berries and popped a couple in her mouth again. The feeling subsided and she felt better immediately, looking up at Yeyinde she saw him watching her, but she couldn't read his expression. Chowing down on another berry she felt much better than she ever could have before Hehl. "So whad'ya say?" Her hazel eyes danced as she grinned at him, inviting him to give into the hunt.

Yeyinde watched Hannah eat the small dried berries, having seen her eat a few now. Something didn't seem right about it, but his mind was so caught up in being reunited with her, he couldn't quite place it. When she gave him a wild smile, he seemed to forget his worries completely. "When do you wish to hunt?" He motioned her to follow him, as he turned going into the _Guan-Thwei_, he gathered up his hunting gear, listenting to Hannah walk in behind him.

"I'm ready whenever you are," She watched him, seeing him nod, he donned his Awu'asa, his armor. Reaching up on a hook he pulled down a hanging bag, tossing it to her. "What the-!" She caught the clunky thing amidst her hunt-partner's laughter, clicking trills echoing in the small interior of the _Guan-Thwei_. They brought Greeta, dull thumping steps, peeking around the corner. Her head spikes wiggled as she laughed, which made Hannah smile in return. Opening the bag she pulled out what appeared to be light weight armor, made in her size. It wasn't however a full Awu'asa, mearly a light exercise set, but made of durible metal, in a sliding plate pattern that allowed for a great range of movement. "Yeyinde?" She looked up at him, her eyes wide.

He rumbled softly, "It was all I was able to have made, since an Awu'asa is only given to hunters once they depart for their trials." Bending he pulled out the armguards and leg guards that went with the set from the bag. "They should do alright for now. Later we will find you more armor." He set them down to help her clasp on the chest peice. Once they had everything on her in the proper place, Hannah restrapped her weapons on. "You're blades, they look almost like H'sai-de," He said, taking one from her and inspecting it, "They are well crafted."

Hannah mouthed the Yaut'ja word then grinned, "H'sai-de, scythe like blades, have a wide array of styles and fighting techniques. Yeah that sounds about right." She held her hand out for her blade back, Yeyinde handed it back she she slid it back into it's sheath. Pausing a moment she reached her hand out, touching his chest. Her eyes watered up, and she felt her chest constrict, "Y-yeyinde?" Her voice was soft and he almost didn't hear it. She took a step towards him, trembling.

Reaching out Yeyinde cupped her chin and turned her face up to his, "Hannah, what is wrong?" He bent near her face, "Tell me." It pained him to see the tears in her eyes, to feel her body shake. He wished he understood better how she felt, he wanted nothing more than to know what to do just then. "Hannah?"

Reaching her hand up to touch his face, Hannah looked up at him, "Please, tell me this is really you. You're actually here. This is real." The tears streamed down her face, dust on her skin making the streaks obvious. She felt him pull her close and hold her tight, listening to his heartbeat, the sound of his blood rushing beneath her ear. She clutched to him and sobbed, suddenly aware that he was here to stay, that it wasn't a dream. It was real. He was real. He was holding her, actually holding her, on that god forsaken rock in some remote part of space, she wasn't alone anymore. Once her tears had subsided and her breathing evened out, she stepped back and smiled at him, "Uh, how.. how about that hunt?" She looked down to double check her weapons though they didn't need it.

Sensing her discomfort on her emotions, Yeyinde nodded, "Yes, let's go see about this insect queen. Let me inform Greeta of our hunt, then we shall leave." He stepped inside and found the recently freed slave. **"Greeta, we are going on a hunt. You may remain here, you will be safe."** Once she agreed to stay he turned and closed the hatch as he stepped out. Following Hannah as she made her way down from the plateau, towards the deepest part of the jungle, both avoiding the local predators. The minrapts seemed to sense his presence and avoided the path of the hunters. It wasn't long until they were coming up on the blood-bee nest. Hannah crept up a fallen log that overlooked the hive. She felt Yeyinde touch her shoulder, as he knelt next to her, cloaked from the sight of the bees. Hannah briefly wondered if his green blood would put of the same appetizing scent as the local fare. Smirking she drew her blades silently and slid down one side of the log, landing on top of a pair of drones, sinking her blades in to the back of their necks. The pair dropped immediately. Looking up at Yeyinde she smiled ferally.

Dropping beside his hunt partner he clicked softly, appraising her attack, then gave a low rumble and a quiet trill of approval. He watched as Hannah sunk her blade into the side of the log. **"What are you doing?"** He knelt beside her, setting his hand on the side of the log. It felt solid beneath his touch, and his claws left slight marks on it as he scored the wood, telling him it wasn't rotted through yet.

**"The interior, is like a** a maze The front has more paths than we could traverse in one day. We left Greeta alone, and should get her home soon. A day or two hunt is long enough." She had to use a little English for the Yaut'ja she didn't know. **"We can cut through here. I got in there once, I know my way around a little."** She had almost died in the hive below, that she didn't tell him. It was when she had gotten the leg-scyths to make her blades, she had to find just the right pair.

Yeyinde flicked his wrist, extending his wrist-blades, **"Allow me."** The ki'cti-pa made short work of the log, creating a hole big enough for him to fit in, which was of course plenty large enough for Hannah. He cautioned her to wait, leaning in he slid forward, cutting through further until he had bored a hole all the way through. He leaned his head in, not seeing any of the blood-bee's, he dropped down, landing on the ground with a dull splat. Looking down he knelt and touched the wet floor. His fingers came back bloodied.

Hannah landed beside him, seeing the floating blood, she smiled, "I call them blood-bee's for a reason. Come, this way." Staying in the shadows, and moving along a crevace that was not used by the regular drones, it was made to accommodate the queen bee's larger body, her crest and side spikes fit along those spaces. Hannah could tell Yeyinde followed, the blood on the ground moved where his feet landed. It was not something that the drones would see, so she let it be. Once, they had to stop, Hannah standing stationary against the wall as a group of drones buzzed by. They could not smell her in here, the amount of blood already concentrated masking her scent. After a few hours and one wrong turn with some minor backtracking, they came to the main chamber. "She's here." Hannah said, eating a small handful of the red berries she kept in her pouch. Turning her head to spit a seed out she smiled at Yeyinde, who had momentarily decloaked. "Are you ready?" She flashed him her feral grin once again and looked down to the entrance to the queen's chamber.

Yeyinde rumbled deep in his throat, a wild sound, **"I am, huntress. Let us begin the fight."** They both crept forward, him automatically taking the lead. Rounding the corner to the chamber, they stopped, his breath hissing in through his mask as he gasped at the sight before them.

Hannah's jaw dropped and she cursed breathily. "No way..."

Until next time kiddies! 


	18. Blood Bath

**tain89:** Thanks, so happy you like it.

**GaiaMother:** Yes! It was a cliffy! but I love you all so I'm making this chapter long!

**wicked falcon:** waiting for next chapters usually has good results! :)

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**Ginstar3:** Thank you for the lovely review, I'll listen up for you, though I'm in WA state. I dunno if they'll have babies, I never really saw them as compatible. My beta reader has been unable to preview chapters before I post them, so there have been typos moreso lately. And I thank you too, I do love ConCrit! I too (obviously) support inter-species couples ^^

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Kittyn~

I'm writing this on the road, so sorry it took so long to update! Ahhh it's so good to be on the road again. If your ever in WA state, we caravan on CB channel 13, put a breaker out for Kittyn! I'll be around occassionally, usually asking my uncle over the CB for grammar checks!

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Sorry this chapter was delayed, I've been rather sick

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Ti'ka'il put the last of her little crowd of children to bed. Between her own, Yeyinde's brood, her cousin's wild raised children, and a neighbor's pair of toddling terrors, she had quite the busy house. Det'kin'da's rank alotted them rather large living quarters, so she had room for a large bunch of little ones. They were her joy in life, and she loved them all. She herself was nearing the age when children would no longer be an option for her. Thinking about it she felt a sad twinge pull at her heart. Perhaps they could have one more before she became too old. Det'kin'da, she knew, would not be against trying, many many times. She smiled, the love her mate had for her cheered her life and made her days blissful. Not many lifemates had their strength of love, oft it was simply a matter of politics and good hunting marks. In public though they kept an appropriate damper on their emotions, but at home was another story. When her cycle came, he took her with a sweet love, though it was wild and passionate, it was a caring love. When she was not in in her receptive-cycle, he showed his affection often, even if it was just a quick and soft caress from his rough hands during a busy day, he did not let her forget that he cared. It was because of her own happy mating that she so supported her younger brother and his love for the woman Hannah.

Tapping the heating control up a couple notches she shut the door softly, leaving the sleeping children to a nice warm nap. They had played a hunting game in the morning, and it had drug itself on until far into the afternoon. Knowing it was good practice, Ti'ka'il had rounded up only the youngest three of the hunting pups up for lunch. They were too young to go without the nutrients they needed still. The very youngest was a mere infant and stayed in a sling nestled to her stomach. Her heating mesh put out warmth for it, and it cooed and made little please growling sounds while it was awake. The little one's inner teeth had come in, but the tusks were still covered in a soft fine skin, though were nearing the breaking point. She gave a small soft rumbling growl of a sigh, but purred contentdly at the infant. She had found and cleaned the teething pacifier. It had a suckling nub that helped with the inner teeth, and a large multi-surfaced protrusion for the mandible tusks as they came in.

Setting to work on getting a after nap snack ready, various meat slices along with some fruits and tubers, she set them out on a large plate on the low table in the main play room along with lidded cups that had only a small hole from which to drink, full of sweet fruit juice. Once that was done settled onto a large curved chair, cuddling the now sleeping baby to her. She closed her eyes and rested, not fully asleep, listening for sounds from the children's nap room. She wondered where Hannah was, and if her besotten brother had found her yet. She gave a peaceful purr, he had probaby found her and had his arms around her now.

Yeyinde reached out a rapid arm wrapping it around her waist he hoisted Hannah up to the ledge he was on, swinging his ki'cti-pa in a deadly arc over her head, colliding solidly with the scyth arms on a drone blood-bee. He cursed as the scyth chipped, then shattered. Sharp shards fell towards the human he held. She was still unsteady on her feet, somewhere on her head bleeding, the blood matting her hair and running down her cheek. It edged into the corner of her mouth and she tasted the copper, it put an edge to her senses, instictively reminding her how important it was to keep the precious red liquid on her inside. Pushing her behind him, Yeyinde took a second to glance and see what damage the scyth shards did. There were a few new gashes, but they were small and inconsequential. Her eyes didn't seem to focus well, he could tell she was dizzy still. He gave the oncoming drones a fierce roar and stood protectively in front of the swaying human, slashing and stabbing with well aimed and well trained blows. He warded off the drones, who were a formidable foe, but not nearly as intelligent nor dangerous as the Kainde Amedha, the black exoskeleton aliens that used other creatures as hosts for their young. The highest prized skulls to don a trophy wall for their cunning in battle, and their intelligence in a hunt.

Hannah groaned and clutched her head as Yeyinde guarded her. She had taken a glancing blow from the arm of a queen. She was pretty sure that her skull was at least fractured, and her clavicle felt injured from a different attack. The gather-drones had long small dart like tongues that quickly punctured and then numbed a prey, allowing the gatherer to harvest the blood from the still conscious, and fearfully immobilized creature. Her shoulder felt a little numb, but she could still move it. As her vision cleared, the dark red haze fading away from the edges of her sight she took a deep breath and with shaking hands pulled a good sized handful berries from her pouch, chewing them rapidly she picked up her blades, putting the slightly damaged one in her left hand, since her right was her predominate hand, and the back ridge of the left blade was still good for blocking. So she could block with the left and attack with the right still. She felt the shaking in her body subside and her breathing even out. The rapid movements of the blood-bees and the battle raging Yaut'ja seemed to slow to a manageable pace. Giving a shout she plunged into battle, slashing and blocking. Soon she had created a steady rhythm of attacks, blocks, dodges and parrys. Her voice rang out in clear shouts, emphasizing each hit and block. Her eyes flashed wildly as the dark blood of the bee's splattered on her and her surroundings.

Out of the corner of his bright shining yellow eyes Yeyinde saw Hannah jump into battle next to him, and he moved around until he had his back to her, and she had her back to his. They locked eyes for a moment, and she gave him a quick nod, their backs touched and they moved together, rotating in a circle as he had shown her long ago, though she had to arc her blades up occasionally to guard his much taller back. He felt a sharper pain in his side and looked down to see a scyth blade pulling away, his brilliant green blood splattered on it. Roaring in pain he slashed, removing the arm from the bee that had landed the blow. Even his ki'cti-pa, his wristblades, had trouble pulling through the tough hide of the insects, it was much harder to cut than even the acid-proof hides of the kainde amedha. Perhaps when they were through here he would take some and see if he could work with it. He could see beyond the hordes of drones, watching the enormous queen, hearing her sharp series of chirps and clicks, she seemed to direct the seemingly unintelligent drones. They needed to take her out. The number of drones was dwindling fast, they simply weren't built for this type of combat, which sadly lessened their honor in hunting, but the queen was going to be a wonderful skull to display. For a moment, as he stabbed a drone through the neck, he wondered if Hannah would fare better with the queen bee skull on her trophy wall, but then his hunters instinct took over and he wanted it on his own.

On the back of her arm Hannah felt a warm splash and glanced back in time to see bright green blood, and Yeyinde taking the arm off of a drone. She smirked focused on her opponents, blocking a slash and returning one of her own, only to be blocked as well. They were slowly learning, she frowned and leaned her head back, **"We need to push towards the queen, this is getting no where!"** She wanted that damned queen dead. It had haunted her dreams and brought her nightmares during her year on Hehl. Stepping over the dead bodies of drones that lay scattered around them, they slowly began to push the battle towards the queen. Behind her, the cavern spread into a room full of egg-sacs hanging from the walls and across the ceiling, they wriggled and glistened in the low light of the cavern. Repeatedly Hannah found herself thankful for the flourescent reaction that happened somewhere in the mix of the saliva of the bees, the blood of their prey, and the walls of the cavern. She knew Yeyinde's mask allowed him to see in the dark, but she didn't have that advantage. The light was a crimson color, and flickered off the black hides of the bee's like a blood red fire. She ducked as a drone dove towards her shoulder, his mouth-dart lashing out at her. It nicked the side of her face and her cheek instantly went numb. She growled low and continued to beat off the bee's that were nearly her own size. From where she was she couldn't quite tell that a majority of the drones concentrated on Yeyinde. Pretty soon they were nearing the smoothed little pocket in the warm ground that the queen was nestled in, and the number of drones was dwindling until there were only four in front of Yeyinde and two in front of Hannah. By now her damaged blade was even further destroyed and rendered useless. She threw it at the head of one of the drones, hitting one of it's fractile eyes, and halfway blinding it. Taking up her remaining blade with two hands she snarled and jabbed the end at the second drone.

Yeyinde slashed his ki'cti-pa, but the drones all leapt back, avoiding the super sharp jagged blades. Taking the moment to grab his smart disc, flicking his wrist to extend the six blades at the end, he flung it in a wide arc, taking the head off two of the drones, and splitting the skull of the third. It missed the fourth completely, and returned on it's arc to his hand. He caught it and deactivated it, facing the remaining drone. Taking a couple of slashes at it to push it back he risked a glance behind him. Hannah was doing well, and holding her own. He slashed again, and quite by luck knocking away an attacking scythe. They were still a good couple of yards away from the queen, but he noticed she had gone quiet. That bothered him, but he couldn't find a break to turn and look, the drone was pressing the attack. He roared greatly, and let lose a few savage swipes of his black blades. They clashed against the blades of the drone, then tossed the creatures arm aside, and he landed a killing blow, sinking his blades in deep, and tearing down, ripping the carapace wide. The drone shrieked and twitched as it fell. He rumbled and turned to Hannah. She was crouched beside him, staring unnervingly at one point ahead of her. Looking in that direction, Yeyinde saw the queen blood-bee staring back, she was pacing in the bowl she sat in, the clack of her body and the thunderous buzz of her wings was the only sound in the cavern for a while.

Hannah's eyes never left the queen once she had dispatched the last drone, crouched with her remaining blade. Taking the moment, she fished out another handful of berries and eating them quickly. Yeyinde finished his fight, and stood beside her. Grinning at him she forced a trill from her throat, drawing his attention at the curiousity the sound represented to him. **"You ready, love?"** She asked, with a wild fire in her eyes. Getting a nod from the yaut'ja, she turned her eyes to the large insect, **"I'll follow your lead, hunter."** Taking a better grip on the handle of her blade she waited, for either him to move, or for a command. A few moments later, and she could see the trio of red dots from his targeting device. He didn't fire so she figured he was scanning. After a few moments, he moved first, and she was quick on his heels, he leapt as the queen lunged forward, slashing with her long and barbed scythes. Hannah ducked them, and dove under, going for the soft underbelly. A secondary leg swung out and knocked her legs from under her. She tucked and rolled in the bloody slime of the floor, and came up with a feral grin, and using both hands jabbed sideways at the queens stomach, as she heard it scream, Yeyinde's growl-shout of triumph. She felt him land near her, and turned to look, sidestepping a flailing leg. The queen was stumbling blindly, her double sets of eyes gashed, four pits of dark blood. Taking a few long steps away, Hannah avoided the legs and scythes of the queen as she stumbled.

Yeyinde reached a large hand out and pulled Hannah further back, **"Stay safe."** He leapt forward, his combistick extended, he dodged a scythe-arm, and leapt up a leg, clawing purchase with his hand on one of the many spiked protrusions coming from the queen's body. Leaping up above her, he twisted and thrust his spear into the neck of the queen. Using it to step on he leapt up again, drawing his arm back, his ki'cti-pa extended, he jabbed forward with all his weight, sinking the blades deep into where his scans had found the center of it's nervous system. The queen let out a shrill keening, before shuddering and falling. Dropping back, Yeyinde caught his combistick, but couldn't pull it out before he fell. He landed and rolled clear from the queen. It lay still and he scanned it. Dead. They had won. Looking back at Hannah he could see she was annoyed just by how she stood. Her arms were crossed, weight on one leg, the other ahead of her. Her brows were crinkled as she frowned. Perhaps he should have let her assist, it would have been more fair, afterall he did not know what hunts she had completed as of yet. But the ones he knew, the Tor'kae from long ago, on the planet Lev'ic'ta. They were such simple little lizards compared to the creatures that inhabited this planet.

She was proud, and before he turned to her, she was beaming at him. That was her male, the great hunter. The ease and style in which he fought was purely beautiful. Her heart swelled for him and she hummed a pleasant purring, sheathing her blade. Seeing his shoulders turn as he turned to her, she put on the mask of anger. She could have helped, she would have enjoyed it. She gave a sigh and stepped forward, Yeyinde didn't rise, he gave a mischevious yaut'ja style grin at her, his yellow eyes sparkling. He purred, laying in the bloody muck as Hannah couldn't keep the smile off her face. "You brute, you great crab-faced brute." She knelt beside him, letting him pull her close. They only enjoyed a few moments in each others arms. They needed to move, to get out of the area before they were discovered with the corpse of the blood-bee queen. Before she stood, she lay kisses on his face and smiled, **"I am proud of you, my hunter. Proud to call you my lover."** She saw Yeyinde's face still and his eyes dart back and forth between hers for a moment, then he rumbled a deep long purr, clicking and low.

He couldn't believe the strength of the emotions she brought out in him. It was like life had lacked so much, someone that triggered such joy and such passion. Everything around him, all the old mundane tasks, now he had someone to share them with. Hannah's presence cast a new light on his world. Holding her close he murmered, **"My huntress, my heart."** Stroking her hair, he pulled them both up, **"We need to move. To get out the way we came in."** He gathered his combistick from the carcass, and with quick efficiency removed the head of the queen, hoisting it in a net over his shoulder. **"The little ones, do you want to take a trophy?"** He bent to the body of the drones. When he felt Hannah's hand on his shoulder he stopped and looked up at her darkened face. "Hannah?"

**"I want no memory of this place. I'm leaving it behind me."** She shook her head and turned to leave, hearing Yeyinde following behind her. He watched her sure steps, and her steady stride. Her shoulders held high and her walk proud. This was not the same woman that had been taken from him before. She was the same loving creature, his Little Warrior, but she was feral now, and strong. He knew she needed some training, but even now he would not wonder if she could pose a serious threat, even to him. But something else about her nagged at the fringes of his mind, something wasn't right. He watched her take another handful of dried berries from her pouch. _A meal does sound good right about now._ He thought, distracted for the moment from his worries. They made their way out, with little bother, he only shot the head off of one drone, and a Minrapt stalked towards Hannah before catching sight of him and turning tail to flee. It was nearly an hour later when they reached the _Guan-Thwei_.

Greeta was there, and she tittered happily at them. She had raided his food storage and prepared a meal, of dried meats and fruit. Both Hannah and Yeyinde thanked her and insisted she sit to eat with them, something she was not accustomed to. Hannah gave the poor female a sympathetic smile and told her that the meal was wonderful. Yeyinde ate with little comment, not exactly the best with words. After the meal, Greeta excused herself to nap in one of the back rooms where she had set up a cot. Yeyinde cleaned the skull from the head of the queen, and mounted it in his own tropy room, having cleared a section of the storage room and put up a tropy wall for Hannah. Her Kainde Amedha skull was on it already. She smiled when he finally showed it to her later. Both Hannah and Yeyinde took some time to clean up, covered in the thick bloody mixture from the cave floor. Hannah's face and shoulder were beginning to get feeling back, and Yeyinde made sure to clean up her wounds well and wash out any infectants. He allowed Hannah to preen over his injuries as well, leaning back with his eyes closed, listening to her talk about various things from the planet she had called 'Hehl'. He supposed it had been her own personal hell, when she had first arrived. That first morning...

Sitting up Yeyinde took her hands and pulled her onto his lap, **"Hannah, my love, I want you to know, that nothing like this will ever be allowed to happen again. I will not let you be taken from me, and I can never apologize enough to you. It never should have happened. Some other hunters have brought home human mates, and have been accepted for it. They are a members of a clan that is close to mine, with many ties. Nearly the same as mine, my honor is accepted there, as will be yours. We can go there now."** He stroked her hair and her face as he spoke. **"Do you agree to this?"** His yellow eyes hovered questioningly over her face, anxious and unsure.

Hannah smiled broadly, "That's wonderful. **I agree, Yeyinde. I would like to go there. Perhaps the humans and I can become friends there!"** She slid her arms around him feeling his rumbling laughter. **"What? What are you laughing at?"**

**"You are already friends with them. They are the two women you showed me long ago in the picture."** He let his hand fall down to her back, tracing the long scar there. "Where is this from?" He asked in English. To him it was a quite beauitful scar.

Hannah felt where his clawed fingers touched her back softly, "Remember I told you I saw the queen blood-bee once before? I kinda left out the part where I got attacked by her." Slowly she explained each of her new scars, from the various creatures on the planet, and a couple from a fall down a steep mountain side. **"I have learned a lot from them all."** Yeyinde lifted her and lowered his bed. "Now now, I thought we agreed that wasn't happening until your sister got a look at me?" She smirked at her mate-to-be.

A low rumble of a chuckle snuck out as Yeyinde smiled and nuzzled her cheek with his mandibles in a yaut'ja-to-human kiss. **"That is true. I want to lay down to rest, and you need to as well. The bed extends sideways, so there is room for us both."** He got onto the bed and pulled her onto him, letting her nestle up against him. "I promise not to roll over onto you," Yeyinde joked. He felt Hannah's hand slowly tracing one of his new scars.

**"Tell me their storys?"** She asked in a soft voice. She listened as he complied, eventually falling asleep however, snoring softly. That was Yeyinde's sign to stop, which he did, curling his arm around her, he let himself drift off to sleep, as they all spent their last night on Hehl.

**_Until next time, kiddies!_**


	19. Farewell Hehl

**tain89:** Thank you! I'm very glad you liked it, I'm rather unsure about my fight scenes, as I havn't done swordplay myself to have any actual experience for the writing.

**Ginstar3:** WOw! Awesome review! The blood-bee's are based on a nightmare I had after playing World of Warcraft and spending a lot of time in Sholazar Basin where there are some awesome giant wasps. And you're catching onto the berries, good eye you're the first to say something about them. I hadn't planned to go too far in to Greeta's character, but, hey! Why not? :D I like her, so it won't be hard.

**GaiaMother:** Hope I didn't make you wait too long.

**Naga Shark:** Thanks for the excited review!

**Kuragari1024:** Welcome back! I'll definately give it my best shot, dunno how good it'll be.

So sorry for the delay everyone! Life got in the way again.

Morning came far too early, Yeyinde had woken a couple hours ago, still holding a pleasantly sleeping Hannah close. He noticed that her sleep apnea was much better than it had been before. She only had one episode, and it was very minor. He wondered if it was something on Hehl that had helped her. He just knew that it would bother her to no end that something on this planet helped her. She seemed to hate this place so much, yet she was so well a part of it now, though he had no doubt she would adjust well to space life again. Personally he couldn't stand to be a planet dweller. He enjoyed the freedom of space living far too much. Had he been born in an era long ago, before his species was capable of space travel, he probably would have hate it, or been a drifter, never staying in one place too long. Much like Hannah had been back on Earth. He ran a clawed hand through her feather mane, then sat up, drawing her up with him. He watched her stir and mutter. She tensed for a second, but then relaxed as she caught his musky scent. "Hannah? It's morning." He kissed her face then stretched as she sat up on her own, blinking crusty bits out of her eyes.

"Why?" She asked petulantly. **"Morning should wait for me!"** Her eyes sparkled and she grinned up at the tall hunter, watching his thick corded muscles stretch and relax. The scarred skin rippled over them, inviting her touch. She slowly ran her hand up his exposed chest, "Yeyinde?" Her voice itself was almost a purr as she leaned up against his chest and snuggled close to him. "Can we visit Ti'ka'il soon?" Her hand touched his thigh softly, tracing a long line to his knee. "We really need to..."

Wrapping his arms around her body, Yeyinde let out a pleasant purr-laugh, **"Patience, Little Warrior. We will see her soon."** He scooped her up and stepped off the bed, he strode to the back room, where the cold storage was. Pulling open the slide out tray he pulled some meat out, and handed it back to his intended. "Breakfast first, and that stuff you called meat earlier tastes like the bottom of my sandal." He saw Greeta walk in as he spoke to Hannah.

**"How would you know what the bottom of your sandal tastes like?"** Hannah asked with a big grin, ducking as Yeyinde swatted at her, calling her impudent. She saw the blue-skinned woman watching them, and heard her odd laughter. **Hey, Greeta. Did you sleep..good? Time for first meal for you too?"** She gave the timid female an encouraging smile, finding that human facial expressions were closer to tharian than the yaut'ja expressions were. Hannah and the shy tharian left the ship, and started a fire to thaw and cook the meat on. Yeyinde bustled about in the ship, making room for both Hannah and Greeta, and making sure everything was ready go to.

**"Yeyinde seems like a nice hunter."** Greeta said, her voice soft and airy. She turned her large black eyes on Hannah, **"He is good to you?"** She had long forgotten what it was like for someone to be good to her. The way Hannah and Yeyinde treated her made her feel wonderful. She was worried that when she returned to her people, she would not be welcomed. Her people were vain and proud, and though she knew that the human girl in front of her did not realize, Kec'than had greatly deformed her. Her pale shimmering wings were gone, the spines from her tail were gone, her head spines were severely shortened. She knew the spines would grow back eventually, but her wings were forever lost. Without them, she looked like a male, save for her female attributes. Her black hair was dirty and snarled, laying in tangles. She would deal with it later, once she was far from where that lipuda, bastard, had died. As soon as the fire was built and the meat cooking, she sat back with Hannah, crouching on her digitigrade legs, her tail coiled and peeked out from under her long ragged skirt.

Hannah noticed the tail, but said nothing about it, taking it in stride with the other irregularities of the blue skinned woman. _Irregularities? Heh, she probably think's I'm crazy looking._ She smiled a little and turned her head to her new friend, **"Are you happy to go home?"** She asked, figuring that if she had been in Greeta's place, she would be overjoyed to go home. The depressing look on the tharian's face, however, told her that they were of two different thoughts. **"Why not?"**

Greeta shook her head, making a soft whine, **"You can't tell, but that... thing, he..."** She took a deep breath to steady herself, and tried again. **"He made me ugly, and took my wings, he deformed me. I'm ruined."** She let her head drop to her knees, curling about herself, her tail flickering between her fleshy hooves. She felt Hannah's hand touch her shoulder comfortingly as the human crouched beside her. Placing a four jointed hand on the pink human one, Greeta looked up and smiled, showing her serrated fangs. **"I appreciate that, but it does no help."**

Giving the blue woman a soft sympathetic smile she sat next to her, **"You would always be welcome with us. You could stay on ship. You could live with friends, with us."** At this point both women realized neither spoke Yaut'ja fluently, but well enough to get by, and they laughed. **"We can learn to get better, both of us."** Hannah pushed her short yellow locks from her face and grinned, **"Yeyinde could teach us both! It would be...happy.. no wait.. fun, yes! Fun!"** The two shared another laugh before checking on the cooking meat. Hannah absently snacked on some of the agrigate red berries, she figured on filling her pouch before they left. She had become quite fond of their taste, and would miss them. They helped her nerves a lot, and were good for her energy levels.

Yeyinde watched Hannah eating the small dried berries, she hadn't even noticed the shaking in her own body. He had scanned her before she had eaten them, and couldn't see any hard evidence of her tremors in her. It must be chemical. He gave his great dreadlocked head a shake and turned back inside. He had been glad to see Hannah and the tharian become friends, it would be good for the ex-slave, and he wouldn't mind keeping her on, but only after they took her to her home and were certain she could not return there. Her own people could mend her better in ways the oddly matched pair could not. It wasn't that he minded taking on another person, no it would be good for Hannah to have a female to spend time with while they were spaced. He just didn't want to miss a chance at letting her return home, it would have to be her choice. She had choices now afterall. So much was going through his mind he sat down heavily in the pilots seat and sent out a call to Ti'ka'il. He left the alert sounder on, and stepped away, waiting for her to call him back.

It was nearly lunch time when the alert went off in Ti'ka'il's home. Her mate saw it and called to her. She rushed into the room, a child on either hip. Det'kin'da saw and laughed, taking them both off, and running into the nursery, letting the younger pups attempt to take him down. They wrassled while Ti'ka'il answered her call. Yeyinde. She sent a response to him, and it was answered immediately. She didn't even have time to speak, only getting audio, the message across the screen stating that visual was being distorted beyond retrieval. The conversation was very down to the point.

**"Ti'ka'il, I think Hannah is drugged. There are little berries she eats, and when she doesn't, she get's ill. What do I do?"**

There was a pause as Ti'ka'il thought it over.

**"What are the harmful effects?"**

**"None that I can see currently."**

**"Take enough supply to return to me here, and do so. I will examine her and the berries when you arrive. She will be accepted here now. Det'kin'da has enough rank to allow her into his home. He will do this for me."**

A chuckled, **"You are blessed, Sister."**

Pups squealing and growling in the background, **"That I am, Brother."**

The call ended, and Yeyinde returned to the hatch, while Ti'ka'il went to explain everything to her mate, who agreed wholeheartedly with her, as he did often, their society was matriarchal, it was also had classes, and the females ruled each class, unless they came from a lower caste, then they simply ruled their family, rather than their clan. He saw Hannah and Greeta speaking together. He could overhear their broken Yaut'ja conversation. Hannah smiled and laughed, her face lighting up. Greeta also looked much more relaxed, almost happy agian. **Ladies, we're going to be heading out soon. Make sure you've got everything you need. We'll leave after we eat.**

Hannah looked up at Yeyinde and watched him walk off towards her cave. _It won't be mine much longer._ Something seemed to be on his mind, she could see he was distracted. She wanted to go up after him, but Greeta spoke first, and she decided he would be alright for a little time longer. **"I'm sorry, I was distracted. What did you say?"**

Giving the blonde human a smile, Greeta repeated herself, **"You are lucky. He loves you, very much. It's not often the Yaut'ja mate for love. Their society is set up so that it makes it difficult, castes and clans, ranks and honor."** She poked at the fire with a long stick, **"Everything revolves around the Hunt. It's like religion to them, but means so much more."** She poked at the meat, **"Looks almost done, do you think?"** Her black eyes turned to the human again.

Hazel eyes stilled from their usual surveylance. "I suppose.. oh! **I suppose you're right. Greeta? What do you know about their society?"** She crouched on her heels, holding her knees with one arm, and her hand on the hilt of her remaining scythe, using the blade to balance herself. **"I mean, I know some, but only the stuff that was in the educational files that Ti'ka'il sent for me. But it was... very limited."** She reached out and grabbed one of the skewers of meat, **"Yeah this is ready."**

Pondering a while Greeta smiled, **"Well, it's not _too_ complicated. But it does get confusing. Perhaps with your mate's help we can explain while we eat."** She looked around, **"Where is he anyway?"**

Hannah pointed towards the trail to her cave home, **"He went that way. And, we're not mates. Not yet."** She smiled softly, "Not yet." She spaced out for a few moments, idly fetching berries from her belt-pouch. She chewed them quietly, spitting out one of the rare hard pits. **"Here he comes."** She said, hearing the sound of his sandals on the rocky ground. He came into view with a small pouch in his hand, tied shut so that neither female could see the contents. **"Time to eat, love."** Hannah said, standing and walking towards him.

Yeyinde nodded, and bent, touching her forhead with his mandibles softly, he could see her close her eyes and lean into his kiss. He purred softly, **"I will join you in a moment."** He proceeded into the _Guan-Thwei_ and set the pouch down in a compartment, shutting it. _I'll take care of that later, no rush._ He turned and left, joining the two new friends outside. Hannah handed him a skewer of meat. He immediately set to it, taking a seat leaned against the hull of the ship, he drew Hannah into his lap, listening to the sound of her voice as she and Greeta spoke. Occasionally he'd answer a question put to him, though it took a couple attempts to grab his attention. His mind was on Hannah, and what she went through, how she changed. He couldn't quite get his mind around it. Eventually he came to the conclusion that he would just be thankful they were back together, and nothing was going to change that ever again. They would fall back into their life together, even if it took a little time. Just take each day on it's own.

Hannah felt comfortable leaned back against his chest. She could feel his body rumble when he spoke, and steady rythm of his breathing. She has her scythe angled out over his leg, careful not to cut him with it. The food tasted rather bland, but she didn't mind, she wasn't alone anymore. Looking over at Greeta as the Tharian ate, she realized it could have been worse, and that being alone wasn't the most horrible thing that could have happened to her. **"Yeyinde? What happened to my pet?"** She asked out of the blue.

Rubbing her shoulder softly he answered, **"I returned it to Lev'ic'ta."** He spoke flately, no form of apology, having in his mind done the right thing.

Sighing, Hannah nodded, **"Probably for the better...best. It was so..sweet and friendly though! I'll miss the little thing."** She slid her hand down to Yeyinde's knee, and turned to face him, "You returned it alive right?"

Yeyinde rumbled a loud laugh before sliding into a human chuckle, "Yes, Little Warrior, I returned your Ki-ki alive." He kissed her forehead again. **"Come, let's leave now."** And thus, the little band of mis-fits packed up onto the _Guan-thwei_ and were soon on their way to the Tharian home world. None of them were sure what was in store for them now, but they all had hopes that it would be better than their lives had been.

Greeta still worried about her people accepting her again. She fretted and bustled trying to do anything to keep her mind off of it. Hannah was happy to practice her conversational Yaut'ja with the worried Tharian, so that helped a little. She couldn't help but feel a little left out, for even after a time apart, and through what seemed various trials, the other two were still quite the happy couple. She was happy for them though, and hoped to one day have the same relationship with someone who cared so deeply for her as well. 


	20. Drunken Disaster

**Ginstar3:** Well unfortunately not everyone can have a happy ending all the time. But I'll be nice to some of my characters though, just not all though.

**kitarrear:** There will be some happy in the end, don't you worry, I wont break everyone's hearts. ;) And I'm glad you're back to reviewing!

POLL UPDATE: Okay, so it's still open, hasn't changed, but so far 11 people voted for a comic ending, the protagonists (Yeyinde & Hannah) living, and one person voted tragic (they die). Personally I love to kill of my characters, but I won't argue with my readers this time, but I must say, I LOVE THAT ONE PERSON!  
I'm on Twitter now.. I finally gave in. >

again sorry it takes so long, we're having the house looked at, and stuff so I kinda keep busy making sure it's presentable. And work gets in the way. Sorry.

It was a couple days after they had left Hehl that the scanners picked up the Tharian system. Yeyinde saw it but didn't bother to shout back to his shipmates, they were back in one of the other rooms, most likely girl-bonding or something that females did. He leaned his head back, and purred softly thinking on the girls. Over the past few days that they'd known each other, they'd bonded quite well, and were nearly the same person. They'd started finishing each other's sentances and laughing when neither said anything at all. He was puzzled by it, but glad that they each had the other for support. Both of them were still recovering from their own ordeals. Hearing a burst of giggles and trills from the rear of the ship, he turned and let his curiosity get the better of him, walking back to the trophy room where the girls had set extra bedding on the floor. It seemed both Human and Tharian cultures, the females liked to curl up somewhere cozy and chat with each other. He could never see Yaut'ja females doing that. Peering around the doorway he saw them both holding steaming cups of a tea-like drink, and laughing. They spoke together faster than he could understand, both caffienated.

Greeta looked up and saw Yeyinde looking at them quizzically, **"Hannah, dear, your love-sick warrior is peeking at us!"** She said, smugly holding her drink up to her mouth with a little grin. **"Do you think, perhaps he's gotten lonely?"** The frills on her head twitched with amusement, and she recrossed her hooves, settling comfortably into the bedding.

Hannah looked up at Yeyinde, still laughing about whatever humorous commented had been made prior to his appearance, even as she spoke she had to pause for a few giggles. "Yeyinde!" She stood and caught her foot on a blanket, and kicked it off with a few more kicks than necessary, causing the Tharian to erupt in trilling laughter again. The human chuckled too, **"Want to-to join us, my love?"** She asked with a devious grin, her voice waivering and off-pitch, and earning herself a slight glare from her tall lover. **"We're really having a... enjoyable time."** She paused, "Fantastic.. what's the word for fantashtic?" When he supplied it she nodded, **"Fantastic time!"** She had a wide grin still, and her face was slightly flushed.

Leaning forward, Yeyinde took a deep breath, "Where did you get it?" He growled in English. His eyes narrowed and he rumbled grumpily. The room smelled strongly of alchohol, as did both Hannah and Greeta. They'd snuck away to get drunk! He snatched the cup of 'tea' from her and took a sip. "MY C'NTLIP! HANNAH! I HAD THAT LOCKED UP!" The translator was off, but he could see Greeta understood the name of the alchohol, and scooted away, hiding her cup behind her.

Hannah smirked and shrugged, "I lived on the shtreet. I can pick a lock... or remember a-a code I'd sheen you punch in a feewww timesh. It'hs the shame one yew ushed for the hatch! I mean, sherioushly! And what'sh wrong wif jusht a little drink?" She hiccuped and swayed a little, leaning against him. "Buddy, Have a drink!" She said, doing her Andy Griffin impression as best as her drunk mind would let her. She burst into half-strangled giggles again, leaning fully against him, turning back to face Greeta, **"Is-isn't he the..best?"** Even her Yaut'ja was slurred some.

Greeta nodded, **"Most..Most.. yes."** Her speech was clear, but she couldn't seem to find the words she wanted. Looking down at the little blue curved cup she smiled and took another drink. She could hear the low rumble Yeyinde was making, and knew he was about to explode. She scooted into the corner, slightly behind one of the display shelves. Murmering softly to herself in her own language, she sarcastically told Hannah how wonderful Yeyinde was, and how he was gonna really let her have it in a second.

"Give me the bottle. Now," he held his hand out, watching as Hannah sheepishly produced a nearly empty bottle of booze, setting it in his hand. He turned, grabbing her arm and pulling her out into the hallway with him. Silently pulling her along after him he put the bottle away, then turned to her. "C'ntlip is too strong for your system. That bottle was half-ful, now it's almost gone! That's enough to get me drunk! Hannah! Are you-?" She swayed unsteadily and he realized there was no way she could concentrate on him now. He heaved a sigh and shook his head, "You should lay down," He pulled their bed down, and heaved her up onto it, she passed out as he pulled a cover over her. Walking back he saw Greeta leaned against the wall sleeping. Returning to the beds he pulled the Tharian's down, then carried her over into it. As Hannah's new best friend, he felt somewhat responsible for her as well. He shook his head again at the two sleeping drunks.

Both females remained asleep for the rest of the 'day', and Yeyinde pulled his bed down beside Hannah and lay next to her, gathering her in his arms. He had just leaned his head back when her breathing stopped again. He found himself holding his breath as he waited for her to draw another. A sigh of relief left him when she started to breathe again, albeit unsteadily. Once her breathing became rythmic again he allowed himself to relax and fall asleep, his last memory being of Hannah snuggling against his side before he slipped into the world of dreams.

A warbling groan pulled both Yeyinde and Hannah from their slumber. Hazel and yellow eyes turned to look at Greeta's bed, she sat up cradling her head in her hands, giving another hungover groan. Hannah was squinting, and she tucked her head back down against Yeyinde, **"Agreed,"** She muttered, the light piercing her eyes, and the thrumming of the ships engines thundering in her skull. She remembered drinking back on Earth, but she'd always avoided hangovers by some miracle, even when she drunk herself far, far under the table. Her stomach was tied in knots, and churning. She gave a low rumbling groan and curled up into a tight ball next to her lover. _SHIT! This never happened before! Why now!?_ Her mental voice was a pained and pitiful wail. When Yeyinde sat up to lean over her, effectively removing her light blocking wall, she groaned again and covered her face with her arm. "GAH! Yeyinde don't move I was using you to block the light!" She said in English, not bothering to translate to Yaut'ja. It didn't matter, Greeta was to busy with her own pains to care what her friend was complaining about. Rolling away from the light, Hannah felt her stomach flip as she twisted, and she leapt down from the bed, stumbling as she landed, cursing the height of the damned thing, and ran for the 'bathroom'. After emptying the contents of her stomach she stood and walked back out, rubbing her temples. She looked up to see Yeyinde standing, watching her with an undreadable expression.

Following Hannah swiftly, Yeyinde watched with his mask as she vomitted. He hissed, disgusted by the process still. It seemed strange to him, but quite normal to his intended. She came out and fixed him with a pained look, though he assumed it had nothing to do with him, her body was reacting violently to the after effects of his stolen c'ntlip. Part of him simply wanted to think that it served them right for pilfering his drink out of his private stash, but the other part of him wanted to keep his mate happy and in good health. His eye watched her coolly, he'd never seen her this sick before, and it worried him. Her body temperature was high, and her scent was wrong, very wrong. It almost made him feel ill. Her lips were cracked and dry, she was continuously licking them as they held each others eyes. She was extremely dehydrated, and her vision seemed to blur, her eyes not focusing properly. He could see her working hard not to sway in front of him. Somewhere in the back of his mind he was proud of her for putting up a strong front, but the larger portion of his mind told him to take care of her now! He gave in and swept her up into his powerful arms, cradling her against his toned chest, he purred deeply to her.

Hannah was surprised when she was suddenly airborne, leaned against Yeyinde's strong chest. She closed her eyes, leaning against him to listen to his heartbeat. Even though the sound pounded painfully loud in her head, it was still comforting. The hard chorded ropes of muscles in his large arms, that she knew could crush things she though impossible to destroy, wrapped around her, protecting her from every danger that either could imagine. Even in her slightly delirious state, she knew he could never let her go, never let harm befall her again. It was there, in the sorrowful looks, little glances that carried an apology he seemed unable to voice. He felt guilty for her exile, he felt he should have stopped the Elder from banishing her. She knew that nothing like that would ever happen again, he would make sure of it. She felt completely safe, at ease in his arms. Though she hurt like she'd never hurt before, pain twisting her stomach, and even her muscles ached, her head spun and pounded, she felt that it would be alright now that Yeyinde was here again. She felt him lay her on their bed again, and she saw him, through fuzzy vision, as he looked her entire body over with his mask on. It flitted across her mind before fading into the pained blur that kept her thoughts from forming, that he was scanning her. It briefly made her worry that something could seriously be wrong with her, but then she couldn't hold the thought as she slipped into a near-unconsciousness.

Greeta stood shakily, **"What is wrong with her?"** She teetered over, balancing herself on the odd couples bed, **"Is is the drink?"** Her hands wrung nervously, the frills on her head and neck quivering. Surely just that bit of drink couldn't cause this? She worried greatly over her new and only friend. _This is my fault! I shouldn't have let her drink!_ She told herself, even though the entire thing had been Hannah's idea, the little human seemed to have believed herself invincible. But at this time, as her friend lay there, she felt the responsibility had fallen on her, that the ordeal had been her fault. Those thoughts seemed to help her push the pain of her own post-drunken night reaction away, ignoring the pain, she focused on the large Yaut'ja standing before her. He looked similar to his brother, and somewhere deep down that bothered her, but she knew he was nothing like Kec'than, and she had nothing to fear from him. Especially after seeing the way he treated Hannah! No cruel being could be so wonderful to someone like that! Yes, she felt safe with the pair, and happy. Though that all seemed irrelivant now, Hannah's illness was foremost on her mind.

Goldenrod eyes landed on the blue female, **"Can you place a call to my sister? Ti'ka'il."** He asked, watching her nod, bow respectfully and rush off to the cockpit. He could see her rapidly working the controls, though she seemed nervous. He turned his gaze back to the little human who had upset his solitary lifestyle so much. Leaning down he stroked her short blonde tresses, "I promise, Little Warrior, I will find a way to help you, and one day I will know enough, and not need to fetch help always." Kissing her forehead he purred, though it couldn't be said if it was to comfort the ill woman or himself. When he felt her hand suddenly grip his tightly, or as tightly as she was able, he looked down to see her hazel eyes watching him. He could see her struggling to focus as her mouth moved, no sound emitting from her. Leaning close he stopped purring to her, listening.

"I'll be alright you brute, Just... Can I have some of those berries? I need to eat something." She reasoned. "Please.. I just need some berries, just a few." Her voice was urgent, though she could hardly speak.

Standing tall again, Yeyinde shook his head, "No, my Little Warrior, not now. I don't want to give you those, they effect you, and I don't like it. Not until they can be looked at. Ti'ka'il is being contacted now, she-" Hannah cut him off.

"YOU BASTARD! JUST GIVE ME MY DAMNED BERRIES! YOU CRAB-FACED SON OF A-" Her shouts stopped when he growled and placed a large taloned hand over her mouth, silencing her and pushing her back onto the bed.

"You've proved my point, little one." He knew not to take her insults personally, they were drug induced. Heaving a sigh he stroked her cheek with his thumb as she lost consciousness again. "We will find a way to help you."

**"Yeyinde? Sir? Your sister is on her way, I just told her Hannah was very sick and she said she'd be on her way, and ended the transmission. She said she'd track us by beacon, so I activated one. Was that alright?"** Her large black eyes swiveled down to Hannah, **"Did I hear shouting?"**

Yeyinde nodded darkly, **"You did well, Greeta."** He stroked Hannah's cheek again, **"Hannah is very ill."** And that was all he said until Ti'ka'il arrived a few hours later. Hannah's temperature had risen higher, and she was fitfull, groaning painfully, still unconscious. Sweat poured off of her, twice she had heaved, and Yeyinde had to roll her over so she didn't choke on her own vomit. Greeta helped clean up afterwards, and they kept cool we cloths on the human's body in an attempt to manage her ever rising body heat. Yeyinde was starting to growl and snarl, his temper short. He didn't like feeling so helpless.

Ti'ka'il instantly set him to fetching thing for her from her docked ship. It was empty, she'd left all the pups with Det'kin'da this time. She took blood samples from Hannah, and asked for samples of the berries that the human seemed so desperate to get. After a couple more hours, she returned and gave Hannah an injection of a pinkish liquid, and the woman calmed, and slept peacefully. She turned slowly, facing the nervously waiting shipmates. **"I have some bad news, and some good news."** Her amber eyes looked down and met her brothers.

"Hannah will..." 


	21. Hannah will be

And onto the story!

**Naga Shark:** I like your idea, very similar to the truth. Don't you worry, she wont die from something so stupid. ^^ Hannah's tougher than that. ;)

**Horned Reaper 266:** Yes! Cliffhangers! It's what happens when reviewers get pushy, so blame your fellow readers.

**tain89:** 'great cliff' ... mmm was that sarcasm I hear there darlin? ^.^ Don'tcha just hate cliffys! *snickers*

**Skarlet Rayne:** I know, I'm horrible ^.^ Don't you worry the chapter's here now! And the next is on it's way!

**Drunken Disaster:** I FOUND YOU! You wanna kill Hannah too! Yay! I love you! Give me babies! Sorry I took so long on this chapter.

Disclaimer: Seriously, if you havn't figured this out by now... you're dense.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ti'ka'il gave a sad look, "Hannah will have to wait, I must tell you, KittynJenn is so sorry this chapter is late! She was extremely sick, and finally recovered! So here it is!"

Yeyinde nodded, "I understand. But do her readers?"

Bursting into the room Hannah piped up, "If they kill her! They'll never get the end of the story!"

Greeta popped her head in, "Very good point!"

They all turned to her, "When did you learn English!?"

Looking side to side nervously Greeta laughed a little, **"Uh I mean.. uh.. good point!"** And she dashes back out quickly.

Okay onto the real story... sorry it's short, but I like where it ended, and next chapter we get to see Greeta's homeworld!! Isn't that exciting? If you have any idea's or things you like to see on it, please feel free to suggest them! I'm always open to suggestions, even if I don't use them.

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**"Hannah will, be alright eventually. She's become addicted to a chemical in the berries, it's in her blood stream, and effecting her greatly. But the injection I gave her will clear it out, but she needs injections ever three hours, until her blood is clean again. She will be asleep for it all. It should take a few days."** Her eyes landed on Greeta, **"Yaut'jan days."** She set a little case with tubes full of the liquid and needles on the bulkhead. **"I can't stay, call me if anything else happens. And destroy all those damned berries! I will not have my new sister killing herself because of an addiction."**

Yeyinde stopped her, **"That was the good news. What was the bad news?"** He felt his heart stopping in fear, strange emotions tearing their way through him. His eyes pleaded with his sister to tell him more, but she shook her head, and he slouched, defeated.

"Later," she spoke in poor English. "We alone, then I say." She turned and left, leaving to return to her life, taking care of the pups and running her own household.

**"What did she say? What is wrong with Hannah?"** Greeta bleated out in dispair. She frowned, her frills drooping when Yeyinde only shook his head, and crawled into the bed next to Hannah, cradling her against his chest, stroking the side of her damp face softly. He stayed there for a while, then he stood and tucked blankets around the sleeping woman, and went to the pilots seat. He set new coordinates in the auto-navigation system and looked over his shoulder at Hannah. The ship changed course and he stood, **"Come, let's have something to eat for now."** He said to the fretting Tharian.

They fixed themselves a meal, as the ship made it's way through the black noiseless expanse of space. Yeyinde had set them for the Tharian homeworld. Hannah was stable for now, so it only made sence to continue on their way. He ate a stew that Greeta had made quietly, his thoughts churning. Ti'ka'il's comment had him worried, but her silence on the matter had him completely frightened. His golden-yellow eyes never left his love, watching her as she slept. Three hours passed, and he gave her another injection. She had started to shift in her sleep, and calmed a few seconds after he had pushed the medicine into her arm. A small bead of blood welled when he removed the needle, and he wiped it away, watching the next one clot on her arm. Glancing at the blood on his finger he wondered again what could be wrong, and if there was something he could do to save his Little Warrior again.

Greeta passed the cockpit and smiled slightly, **"We can stay on my world until Hannah is better. I do not want to go home without saying my farewells to her."** She told the tall male.

Nodding absently at first, Yeyinde blinked a few times and responded, **"Hannah does not say good-bye, it is forever. She will tell you, until next time."** His large hand held Hannah's thin hand gently. "Ah, Little Warrior, please be well soon."

Greeta sat next to Yeyinde, **"You know her well. You love her strongly."** She trilled softly, **"I am happy for you. I could not be with the one I love, but you can. Take care of her well, and love her with all you have, make up for my loss, alright?"** Her black eyes caught his and he nodded in understanding, and put a hand on her shoulder.

**"I will, little sister."** He told her and allowed her to embrace him happily. Hannah had brought the Tharian into their little family, and that would always be, even if she returned to her home, or continued to live with them on his ship. He didn't mind, it was actually rather nice, even if it was an extreme contrast to his previous lone hunter lifestyle. Sometimes he missed the serenity of it, but not as much as he enjoyed the company of the two females.

They had neared the Tharian homeworld, and Hannah still slept fitfully. They were down to two doses of Ti'ka'il's medicine, and Yeyinde began to worry. _What if she wasn't cured? What if the drug was too deep in her system and they could never get it out? Was there a possibility of her not waking from this induced coma?_ He had to lock himself in the back room and go through the paces of his combat training. The walls suffered for it, long scrape marks from his wristblades and a near puncture of the inner wall from a jabbed combistick. He knew he snapped at Greeta occasionally, but always promptly apologized saying, **"I'm not mad at you, don't let what I say get to you,"** as the best apology he could muster. Apologizing was not his style, and did not come easily to him. The only person he had ever truly apologized to since becoming an honored warrior was Hannah. Strange, sweet, wild little Hannah. Once again returning from combat practice he sighed heavily and readied Hannah's next dose of medicine. When he turned to face her bed he saw her looking up at him with weary eyes.

"Yeyinde? What happened?" She asked in a voice unusally small and worn for her. Her blonde hair was plastered in greasy strings to the side of her head, knotted in places, no small feat with hair as short as hers!

Setting the medication aside he leaned over her, placing his hand to the side of her face, feeling her temperature, not having his mask on to scan her. "You were sick, love. But don't worry, Ti'ka'il was here, she's taken care of everything. It's going to be alright now. Don't worry." Leaning down he kissed her forehead and the top of her head, purring softly. Relief flooded him, and it felt like he'd taken a breath for the first time in days. Only now did he realize how much he had worried over his Little Warrior. Her face was pale and ashen, but he expected that of her. "Are you hungry?"

Hannah nodded slowly, "But I dunno if I can eat, my stomach doesn't feel right yet." She tried sitting up, her body stiff and sore. She gave a groan and used the straps of Yeyinde's shirt to pull herself upright. "I want to sit in my chair."

Lifting the small human against his chest, Yeyinde quickly took her to the co-pilots seat and set her down, crouching low in front of her so that they were eye to eye. "Fruit or some broth perhaps?" He wanted to get some nutrients into her system as soon as she could handle the food. When she nodded wearily he stood and called, **"Greeta! Hannah is awake!"**

There was a scuffling and a loud thud from the back room, and soon Greeta nearly tumbled into the cockpit, a light trill coming from her, and her spines quivering excitedly. She threw her arms carefully around her friend and embraced her. **"Oh! I was worried! So worried!"** She gave Hannah a smile and offered food as well.

"Yeyinde is-** is getting me some already. Thank you. Where are we?"** She asked, almost forgetting to speak in Yaut'ja. Her gaze was on the starchart display, one that she could just barely understand, and she knew they were not where they had been before she'd taken ill. They hadn't gone back to the Yau'ja system had they? _Yeyinde wouldn't do that. He wouldn't let that happen again..._ She reassured herself calmly.

**"We're near my home. You're going to see my world! It's so beautiful Hannah! I want to show you everything!"** She had grasped Hannah's hand tightly, as it was customary for females of her kind to hold hands with their friends often. Hannah had no problem with it, having done it with her own friends, what seemed a lifetime ago now.

**"I want to see it all too, Greeta, I really do. But, slowly, I still feel...unrest..unrested."** Her hazel eyes blinked slowly as she kept herself awake, wanting to eat and ease the gnawing in her gut.

Yeyinde returned with a fruit broth and gave it to Hannah, watching as she set to it with as much gusto as she could in her state. He was pleased to see her eating well, and took the empty bowl when she asked for seconds. As she ate the second helping much slower, he sat down to pilot them into the space lanes around the Tharian world. He still could not remember the name of the planet! **"Greeta, what do you call your home?"**

Greeta smiled and made a trilling and whistling noise, **"But translated it is often called Tharia."** She shared a good laugh with Hannah, and felt that everything was falling back into place again, even though she felt an odd stirring within her. She wanted to return home, but at the same time the very thought brought on an unexpected apprehension. This feeling surprised and confused her a little. Rubbing her hands together with anxiety she wandered over to look out of the front view ports, watching the stars move around them ever so slowly. She could see her planet, and the sun that it orbited well from where they were. It was an absolutely beautiful sight, after the time she'd had with Kec'than. She keened softly, crying for home, joyously and longingly.

Yeyinde walked up behind Greeta and placed a large hand on her shoulder, **"You will soon be on your home soil. Do not worry, it will not be long now."** He felt as if he understood part of how she felt, many times he'd been long from home on a hunt and longed to see his planet of birth, where his clan had been. Now most were spaced and spread across the stars. Clan atol were filled, he'd noticed more space bount yaut'ja than there had been in many seasons. Some oddball scientists were claiming it was due to global cooling, but there was no hard evidence of such. Personally, he was a hunter, and as such spent his time away on his own vessel. The life seemed far more agreeable to him, but he still held a love for his home, a fondness of sorts.

Turning to look up at her shipmate Greeta patted his hand with hers, **"Thank you. I just... I've missed home, and I wonder if much has changed, it has been years. I wonder if the people I know and love are still safe and alright, if the places I remember are still there."** She smiled a little, **"There's a little dinery that my mother and I would go to all the time, I wonder if it's still open, if we'll still be able to go. If she's still alive. I've been gone a long time, and she wasn't in the best of health. And what if my home is gone? I just think that my world has changed so much without me!"**

Yeyinde gave a little sigh, **"No more than you have changed without it."** He turned to her and looked her in the eye, putting his hands on her shoulders, **"I can't lie to you and tell you it will all be wonderful. Things most likely will difficult, and it will take time to adjust. But things will work out, and you have us here, you will always have a place here. I promise."** He had somehow developed an older brotherly affection for her, though he hardly recognized it, not very close to his siblings, save Ti'ka'il.

Greeta patted his hands and thanked him, **"I just want.. some time to think, alone."** She gave him a feeble smile, and retreated to the little room she and Hannah had put the bedding in. Her mind churning about the direction her life was taking.

Watching her go, Yeyinde shook his head and turned back to Hannah, he gently slid his arms around her, and carefully lay his head on her shoulder taking in her scent. He felt her slide her arms about his neck. "You women are a lot of trouble all rolled into wonderful bundles of amazement. I don't know what I'd do without you, and yet I don't know what to do with you."

Feeling a sudden moment of giddiness Hannah smirked, "We'll come to that, don't you worry. Besides you have a few kids already, I think you've figured it out already."

And as they came into orbit around Tharia, the ship rang with laughter. 


	22. Love Is That Way

Disclaimer: Ti'ka'il, the Tharians, Hannah, Yeyinde are mine, as is Kec'than, though he's dead, he's still mine.

Review Responses:  
**tain89:** Yes, stories that leave you guessing are fun. Predictable stories are boring for sure.

**Skarlet Rayne:** While I do have a sick sense of fun killing off most of my OCs.. I think Hannah deserves a happy ending.

**kitarrear:** I hope you're doing better! Sorry to hear you were in the hospital, that's never fun. Sorry it took so long to get another chapter out.

_ Well in all things, there comes at time to say farewell!_

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Yeyinde landed the _Guan-Thwei_, after getting landing clearance of course. While he did that, Hannah and Greeta sat quietly, both stuck in their own thoughts, and both holding the other woman's hand. They each wondered what would happen to the other, and what would happen to themselves. Both figured that their lives were headed for a change, and as it is usual with life, it was impossible to see what lay ahead of them. Yeyinde's voice brought them back to the real world, **"Hannah! Greeta! We're landed. Let's get going, the're sending out someone to meet us."**

Hannah stood up first, and held tight to Greeta's hand, pulling the blue-skinned woman after her. **"Put it off, or do it now, it still needs to be done. But you know we're with you the whole way."** Giving a smile, **"It will be easier than facing this alone."** Giving her hand a reassuring squeeze, Hannah walked Greeta to the hatch where Yeyinde was standing, and grabbed the two small swords she always practiced with, leaving her larger scythe blade behind. Hannah hummed a few notes that she learned from Greeta, calming the poor Tharian woman. With a hiss the hatch clamps released and it opened, bright sunlight filtering in on them.

Around the hatch were clustered many Tharian's, wearing long silky robes, male and female. The only difference either Hannah or Yeyinde could spot between the two were the mammary glands, and large wings behind the females. They were shimmering in a full range of colors, iridescent almost. Hannah gaspsed when she saw so many people crowding around the small ship.

There was a bit of confused quiet, a few murmers here and there, until Greeta stepped out from behind Yeyinde. A loud and shrill cheer went up from the little crowd at the sight of her. She took a surprised stepped back, then emitted a shrill noise, rushing into the outstretched arms of a taller female. Many crowded around her, and she disappeared from sight for a while.

Hannah looked up at Yeyinde, "So... uhm." She slid her arm around his, "I guess we wait for a bit, huh?"

A low rumble fell from the male, "I suppose we do, Little Warrior. It is good to see that there was much anticipation for nothing, rather than a let down."

The blonde woman nodded, "That's true." Leaning her head against his arm she sighed happily, "I'm happy. She was so worried too."

Pulling his female close, Yeyinde purred gently and quietly so that only she could hear it. "Perhaps it would be best if we agree to come back, after she has had time to adjust to her new life?" He turned his golden gaze on her, "I want you to come home with me, now that you're accepted. I want this for us."

Hannah smiled brightly, "I do too Yeyinde. I love you so much, and I want to. But we need to stay, we need to make sure Greeta will be okay." Her eyes returned to the crowd to search for her friend, "We should see how things go, then when we're sure she's okay, we can go back and try again."

Eventually, Greeta returned, holding the hands of two elder individuals, and tugging them along. **"Yeyinde! Hannah, these are my Momma and Poppa!"** She came up to them and let go of her parents' hands, and threw her arms around Hannah, then around Yeyinde. Greeta's mother followed suit, though a little more timid. Her father hugged Hannah and gripped forearms with Yeyinde, though he was vastly outsized. Greeta turned and introduced her friends in her own language to her parents, then turned back to her saviours. **"Momma is Vhyaana, and Poppa is Gaahani. They're very happy that you brought me home. They want to ask you to stay with us until you need to return home, but our houses are short roofed, and Yeyinde wouldn't fit. I already explained that to them. There is a field by our home that you can land the ship on."** Her father said something and she paused, talking in their light and airy language. **"Poppa says,"** He interrupted her again, **"Poppa says that you may stay as long as you like, Hannah and Yeyinde, you are officially accepted into the family!"**

The tall warrior and his short human companion were pulled off into an excited crowd. They were introduced to many of Greeta's family, and extended family. Yeyinde wasn't sure he'd remember everyone. Hannah was sure she wouldn't. By the time the day was over and they were able to excuse themselves back to the ship, they both collapsed and heaved a shared sigh. "Now that was intense," Hannah said, leaning against him.

Looking down at her and rumbling a chuckle, Yeyinde agreed. "And I thought our kinds had large families!" They both laughed at that. "Hannah, speaking of family, are you ready to meet yours?" His gold eyes looked a little worried.

Twisting so she could look him in the eye, she nodded and smiled, "I am so ready to be done with this fiasco!"

"Fiasco?"

Shrugging, she found a similar Yaut'ja word for it. "So when do you think we can leave?" She scooted over and lay down on the bench so that she could rest her head on his lap.

Yeyinde watched her lay down and put a hand on her abdomen possesively. "I spoke briefly with Greeta's elders, through her of course." Greeta was the only one there that could translate, meaning quite possibly she was as tired as her two friends currently. "And I explained that I had sought to take you home, and found Greeta on the way. They understood," His thumb stroked her side. "We can leave in the morning."

Covering her mouth when she yawned, Hannah nodded, "Good. Now, what do you say we get some sleep so morning gets here faster."

Tilting his head in curiosity Yeyinde said, "Time will pass at the same speed, if we're asleep or ... oh. Another one of your sayings?" He watched her stand and stretch.

Winking at him she grinned, "You're starting to catch on, my love." She looked up at the pull down beds, "I wish I was taller."

A deep rolling laugh came from her beloved and he stood to bring the beds down. "I like you just the way you are." He kissed the top of her head, and lifted her onto her bed, sliding his down beside hers. He jumped up into his bed and stretched as well. "Do not let me oversleep."

Talking through a yawn she replied, "Yes dear." The comfort she had with him made her smile, but not for long, as sleep claimed her quickly.

Yeyinde stayed awake a little longer, watching her sleep, her breathing even and slow. He waited to see if she would stop breathing at some point, but he too fell asleep before that happened.

Morning came, and the pair awoke to a plaintive beeping. The comm unit was flashing. Yeyinde groaned, having been sleeping well. "What could it be now?"

Hannah rolled out of her bed, dropping to the floor she landed in a quite feline crouch. Stepping over she read the headline. "It's your sister, Ti'ka'il." She yawned and looked back up at Yeyinde, "Should I answer it?"

Twisting in his bed he looked over at her, he could see the screen from there, "If you wish." Rolling onto his stomach, he scratched under his jaw.

The comm came on and Ti'ka'il saw Hannah's face, "Hannah! It's good to see you in good health!" She paused, "You are in good health?"

This made Hannah smile, Yeyinde answered, "Yes, she is. And we have you to thank for that once again." He moved so his arms were over the edge of the bed, "What is your reason for such an early call, Sister?" He yawned, watching the screen.

"I wanted to know when you're coming home," She said, "So I can plan to be there when you arrive." A little one came on screen and waved before running off when his name was called.

Yeyinde and Hannah chuckled at the child's antics. "We should be returning either late tomorrow or early in the morning the next day." He rolled and swung out of bed, stretching his arms above his head. Pushing the beds back up into their closed positions. "I'm sorry I can't give you a more definite time."

Ti'ka'il clicked her mandibles, "No, I understand. Did everything turn out alright with the Tharian girl?"

Hannah grinned, "Her family was so happy to see her! It was wonderful! She was worried for nothing, and Yeyinde and I were made honorary members of her family!" She felt Yeyinde walk up behind her and place his hands on her shoulders. She leaned back into his touch, smiling up at him, getting a tender look in return.

"Then I am excited to see you soon." She bade them farwell, and as the comm switched off, could be heard telling one child to put another down.

The couple laughed, "She loves it though. All that trouble." Yeyinde shook his head, and kissed Hannah's forehead. "We should get going. But first let's-" there was a beep, "Someone's outside." He walked to the hatch and opened the door. Greeta was there, and she hugged him. He chuckled and hugged her back, **"Good morning, Greeta."**

Hannah jumped up and embraced her friend. **"Greeta! I'm happy to see you. I was worried I wouldn't get to before we leave."** Pulling away she took Greeta's hands, **"I will miss you so much, but you have your life here now! Your family was so happy to see you!"** She was actually very happy for her friend. She knew they could come visit often, so parting now wasn't too hard on her.

Greeta trilled joyfully, **"I would have been heartbroken had you left without saying goodbye, so that is why I came early. I hope you have a safe trip, and hunt well."** They hugged again, and gave each other sad smiles, then Greeta left, waving all the way down to the bottom of the landing pad. She got to a safe distance, standing on a small platform to watch the _Guan-Thwei_ take off.

"Grab something for us to eat, I'll get take-off underway," Yeyinde said, sitting down in the pilots seat. He started the pre-engines up, getting all the systems online and running some pre-flight diagnostics. When he got the good to go from all the systems, he called back to Hannah and told her to strap in.

Dashing up with a variety of fruits and jerky, Hannah leapt over the back of her seat and landed in it, sitting down. She yanked her safety straps down over her shoulders and clasped them. "Alright, I'm ready." She bit off a peice of jerky, and offered up the food to Yeyinde.

Yeyinde took a couple different fruit, guiding the take-off with one hand. He looked over at Hannah, she was preoccupied with eating at the moment. In his mind he was replaying every day since he met her, and praying to Paya that she was ready for her new life amongst his kind, and that his kind was ready for her. He thought of the time they were apart, he'd been worried. Worried she wouldn't survive, worried she would blame him, worried she would no longer be the Hannah he loved. But she was, she was everything she had been, and so much more now.

Turning his attention back to the flight he set in the coordinates and precautionary protocols. "Ti'ka'il will be glad to see you. As will your friends." He turned gold eyes on her with a little smile, "Lex and Jaslene?"

Looking at him she grinned, "I knew they would be okay. But I still want to see them, I want to know how they adapted." She shrugged a little, "They can, probably, help me." She bit down and pulled a chunk of jerky free, "And it will be nice to have someone to relate to." Inside however, she was jumping cartweels and backflips, she was excited to see her old friends.

Yeyinde grinned, "You are very right. They will be able to." He chewed quietly, watching as Hannah got up and slipped into the back. He didn't bother to follow, she didn't need him all the time. His mind was still contemplating his time with and without Hannah.

Settling down with her bag of things, Hannah pulled out the worn and faded picture of Lex, she was smiling, holding a set of rock-climbing gear. She'd kept on with her normal life, until Scar had returned. Smiling softly she slid the picture back into her bag, and leaned against the wall. A soft sigh slipped through her lips and she closed her eyes, things were about to get different, and familiar all at the same time. Chuckling softly, she took another bite from the jerky still in her hand.

What felt like days later, though it was only about seven hours, the ship approached a red-dirt planet orbiting dual suns. "Hannah! Come in here." Yeyinde called back. He heard her shuffling about, and turned his attention forward until her soft footsteps neared, "There it is. The Homeworld."

Around it were mass fleets of ships, veritable highways in the sky, some spiralling up, some swirling down, ships came and left in every direction. "It's.. so busy!" She sat in her co-pilots chair, watching the viewports with wide eyes and a wider mouth. "This is amazing!"

Rumbling an amused growl, Yeyinde put in his landing request, and recieved clearance, drawing up into a line of ships headed down towards the planet, "It's old. very old. We've had time to advance further than you. Someday your kind will be much like this as well."

Hannah could only nod, as they neared the muddy-red planet.

Once they had set down on a landing pad, she leapt up, grabbed her remaining scythe-blade, and waited impatiently by the door for Yeyinde. She had the manners not to hurry him along though.

Seeing her ready to leave, Yeyinde shook his head a little, "I'm coming, be patient." He gathered his things, clipping his mask on his belt, and keying the hatch command code in. The hatch hissed open, and humid air filtered in around them. Taking a deep breath, Yeyinde rumbled pleasantly, deep in his chest. Home.

Hannah looked out and saw Ti'ka'il, with a male beside her, and the children. Near them stood two human females and two Yaut'ja males. "Ti'ka'il! Lex! Jaslene!" Hannah grinned as she followed Yeyinde out.

Lex and Jaslene both ran forward, the males that were with them followed in amusement. Ti'ka'il came to Hannah at a slower pace, carrying two pups and leading another three. Her mate went to greet Yeyinde. There were hugs, and gripped shoulders all around, until everything blurred together in a joyful welcoming. Eventually everyone made for the large building, which it turned out, was Yeyinde's clan home, where she would be accepted as well.

As they walked, Ti'ka'il handed the children off to her mate, and motioned for Yeyinde to drop back. Hannah was too busy talking with Lex and Jaslene to notice. "I ran a few more bloodtests after I returned home, and I have both good news, and bad news." Her eyes rested on Yeyinde's face, judging his reaction.

"Tell me the bad news first," Yeyinde had never been one to put things off.

"Those berries have done irreversable damage to her system, mostly to her reproductive system. She will never be a blood-mother, even if our two races are compatible." Yeyinde did seem a little saddened by that, and she saw him look at Hannah softly. He would tell the woman, it was not Ti'ka'il's place.

"And the good news?" He queried.

"Your blood has somehow entered her system, and slowed her aging. The same will likely work with both Lex and Jaslene, if it has not happened already." She saw hope flash through his eyes, "Yeyinde, wait." She cautioned him from getting too excited, "She will not live as long as you, but she will live much longer than she would have before. Her lifespan will likely be close to yours, but still much shorter."

Yeyinde purred, "It will be welcomed. All time I have with Hannah is blessed time." The woman in question turned back and saw him. She smiled at him while Lex and Jaslene spoke to her, and he purred louder, returning the smile in his own way.

Ti'ka'il glanced sideways at him and agreed, "Love is that way." 


	23. The End

Yes, the story is over. No, Hannah was not able to have children. Even with more technology, she was too far damaged. Her life was simple with Yeyinde, travelling the stars for the most part. They died on the hunt, and gained great honor with their kills and wisdom.

There will not be a sequel by me. But if someone wants to continue the story, please ask first. I've moved onto other projects.

Epilogue:

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Ik'yed'a stood in front of a pair of markers. They were cleaned and well made, the couple having earned much honor in their lives. "Father, M'lady," the now grown Yaut'ja bowed before them, "My son hunts the hard meat for the first time today." He spoke to the wind, but felt better doing so anyway. "I hope he has the skill you passed down to me." Bowing again, he turned and left, red dirt swirling in the air in his wake.

The dust settled on the words etched in the markers.

_ Yeyinde of the Sky-blood Clan, and his mate, Hannah of the Sky-blood Clan by honor._

Full lives and many hunts, prey fell before them. They died with honor, and they died facing battle.

May the hunt forever in the halls of Centanu. 

The dead were burned at pyres, but markers were made and left on the clan's ground.

Returning to his speeder, Ik'yed'a climbed in beside his young blood son. "We can go now."

Looking at his father, the young male nodded, "I wish I had known them. The stories I hear are inspiring."

Ik'yed'a nodded, "They battled to bring Lady Hannah here. And then she fought and proved herself amongst our kind, as did her companions, Lady Lex, and Lady Jaslene." He looked a little lost in thought, eyes that shared the same color as his father's gazed over the horizon, "I was just a pup when father brought Hannah to us, but I remember her. She was a person to look up to." He touched the scythe-blade at his hip and pulled it off, handing it to his son, "Take this. I recieved it from her when I went on my first hard meat hunt, and now it should go to you. It is as resistant as our blades to their acid. Take it, and hunt well, honor your ancestors."

The young blood nodded, and took the blade with reverence, "I will bring honor to the clan, father. As did Lady Hannah, who carried this blade." He held it and looked at the much larger one that Yeyinde had constructed out of the Queen-scythe. One day, he too would carry it, once he had proved himself worthy of it. He looked to the markers once more, worthy of the human woman who had entered the world of the Yaut'ja with determination and left with honor.

* * *

_ See you later, Space Cowboy_


End file.
